The Night Unfurls
by Blumenkampf
Summary: Blake Belladonna wakes up in a strangely familiar, yet totally alien, blood soaked city of Yharnam. All of the denizens look familiar, the plague ridden beasts uncannily grim. How will she survive this nightmare realm of men, beasts, and unspoken eldritch beings? "What in Dust's name is Paleblood anyway!"
1. Prologue

**Edit: Added the line thingies.**

* * *

 **The Night Unfurls**

 **Prologue**

* * *

 _The visual nature of dreams is generally highly phantasmagoric; that is, different locations and objects continuously blend into each other. The visuals (including locations, characters/people, objects/artifacts) are generally reflective of a person's memories and experiences, but banter can take on highly exaggerated and bizarre forms._

Confusion and a splitting headache were the only things that enveloped Blake Belladonna's mind as she tried to force herself to wake up. Why was she recalling trivialities such as excerpts from a failed attempt at an essay in one of Doctor Oobleck's classes?

Rubbing the sleep out if her eyes, she rolled herself off the bed-only to fall off of it-slamming face first on the hardwood floor. This promptly forces her to wake up. Cursing her rude awakening, she groggily rolls herself to face upward. What she saw didn't make her day any better.

It was an unfamiliar ceiling. Yellow eyes widening in shock, and finally gaining full consciousness, the smells and aroma of blood and medical elixirs finally crept up into her nose. Her cat ears twitching underneath her black bow as she heard flesh and bone being torn up somewhere close by.

Panic begins to overcome her as she silently stood up and take in the fine details of the room she was in. Archaic would have been too nice a word to describe where she was at. Old medical cabinets surrounded the walls around her. Her would be bed was nothing more than a hospital bed, but it was more akin to gurney more than anything else. Two doors were the portal to the outside of, what she assumed of this room, a makeshift sickroom. Mold covering the wooden surfaces of the furniture and the wooden floor beneath her feet. Definitely not team RWBY's dorm room.

Glancing to her side, she saw a full-length mirror showing her reflection; she didn't like what she saw. She was in her Beacon uniform, which did nothing to calm her down. She wasn't in her usual Huntress outfit, which would usually be paired up with Gambol Shroud… Gambol Shroud!?

She was unarmed. She was unarmed in an unknown location. She was unarmed in an unknown location with danger literally right next door.

The howls of beasts and sound of bones breaking returning did nothing to calm her down. It made her feel _worse_.

"I-I need to get out of here," she muttered. Slowly creeping towards the closed door, she grasped the handle-only to find out that it was locked. A brief thought about breaking the door crossed her mind, but that thought was squashed as the prospect of breaking it would attract too much attention.

Moving towards the other door, her hand brushed a piece of paper that was on top of a desk. Picking it up, she noticed that it was a hastily written note. What shocked her the most was that it was written by her, if the handwriting was anything to go by.

 _Seek Paleblood to transcend the hunt._

 _Slumber brings one to the Dream._

 _Seek Workshop to end the nightmare._

Paleblood? Workshop? Dream? None of these words seem to click with her. This was frustrating! She couldn't remember what had transpired to bring her here. The more she tried to remember, the more her head hurt.

Pocketing the note and forcing her musings at the back of her mind, she decided it would be better to get out of the sickroom.

Clasping her hand onto the door's handle, she swung it open as silently as possible. There was a staircase leading down towards a hallway. There was a sign that says "Iosefka's Clinic" bolted on to the door.

As she slowly and stealthily made her way towards it, the sound of meat being rend from bone grew louder and louder until she saw what was making that noise.

A Beowolf. A lone Beowolf feasting on what she assumed was a pile of broken corpses, if the number of limbs were anything to go 's Grimm mask only formed halfway indicating that it was a juvenile and hasn't matured fully yet. It's dark fur mottled and caked with blood, gangly limbs tearing the flesh out of the bone. _'Guess it hasn't it noticed me yet.'_

It was situated in the middle of a much larger sickroom, with gurneys and various medical supplies strewn all over the large room. Curtains acting as barriers, a chandelier directly on top of the Beowolf, a door right across the room, upper platforms connecting to a balcony, and intricate carvings all over the wooden surfaces finishes the gothic ensemble of the makeshift clinic.

' _There's only one way to go about this.'_ Blake thought to herself as she prepared to jump on to the platform above her.

Aura enhanced feet lifted off the ground and propelled her towards her destination. Landing with as little noise possible, she quickly made her way towards the balcony. Escaping was her only option at the moment.

Seeing a door that led outside made her feel slightly elated. Practically jogging towards the door, she forcefully opened it, strong winds buffeting her as she took in the scenery.

It was a city. She was in a city of some kind. A city that seemed to have come out of an old horror novel. Gothic spires and arches spread throughout the background, The afternoon sun casting its light throughout the drab brown of the sprawling city. The buildings looked strange to her, but seemed to to trigger some familiarity with her. Why couldn't she remember? Surely there would be something that would jog her memory, right?

Blake's thoughts were interrupted as she tripped on some rubble. Cursing herself for her carelessness, she finally drank in the area around her. The sight of the courtyard did not please her at all.

The courtyard was infested with gravestones. It was littered with them in different shapes and sizes; only ending on the large stone walls that encompassed the building. She was on top of a stone path that led toward a large metal gate, effectively corralling her inside and whatever was outside -well- outside. It occurred to her that the courtyard also doubled as a grave. This realization greatly disturbed her. ' _Just how many people were killed here? Why would there be a grave right in front of a clinic?'_

Her body was frozen as her bow twitched in irritation as she heard snarls close by. Glancing behind her she saw that the Beowolf now has its full attention towards her.

Cursing her carelessness with the door and her footsteps, she quickly sprinted towards the stone wall skipping off over large gravestones and vaulted over the large metal gate. effectively sealing the Beowolf inside the forsaken clinic.

Dusting herself off, she started walking the dilapidated streets of the broken down city. Numerous caskets. standing upright or otherwise, littered the streets and alleyways in every corner she could see. Her nose scrunched up in disgust as the smell of blood grew stronger as she continued to walk. the more she went deeper into the city, the more the smell grew stronger. It was unbearably intoxicating... Intoxicating!? Why would she think blood would be Intoxicating!?

Shaking her head, she tried to put all her concentration into just moving and finding someone- anyone that would be able to help her.

The winding streets were confusing to her. The design and layout seem to evoke a maze. Broken down buildings and the occasional crucifix were her only landmarks to be used for navigation.

* * *

Vaulting over another gate that blocked her path, she finally saw what she was looking for. People! They were patrolling the streets in squads. Pitchforks, torches, crude swords, and crude firearms were their armaments. Their features were what surprised her. They were tall and lanky. Their limbs seem to have been stretched far beyond what was natural. But what surprised her the most was that they looked like they had animal features. Fur jutting out of their clawed hands and seem to have canine like facial features.

Were they Faunus just like her? Surely they had to be. Their features says it all! Perhaps she was at Menagerie after all? If this was the Faunus city then the living conditions were way worse than what she originally thought. There was even a Grimm in the clinic she was in!

There was only one way to get the patrol's attention. Mustering up her voice and letting in a deep breath, she slowly removed her bow revealing her cat ears. The appendages twitching as if to relax without the restrictive bow. The bow now tied on to her right hand, idly fiddling it as some form of comfort.

"Hey! E-excuse me! I think I'm lost. I'm a student at Beacon Academy and-and I don't know how I got here." She shouted at the top of her lungs but her voice slowly receding into a low volume. But it seemed to have caught the patrol's attention.

A few moments passed as both parties stared at each other. Panic began to bubble inside Blake's stomach as she continued to stare at the patrol, waiting eagerly for a response.

What happened next was the last thing she ever wanted.

"Cursed beast!"

"Away! Away!"

"You plague ridden rat!"

"It's all your fault!"

The mob started attacking Blake, this caught her off guard. Some even ringing bells to signal others around the area. Pitchforks, sickles, and cutlasses striking her. The crackling of muskets audible throughout the streets. This whittled away at the protective barrier of her Aura.

Letting her Aura take the damage, even only for a few seconds, was a bad idea. That was unusual. Her Aura wasn't the strongest but it could still take quite the beating. So why each successive hit took chunks of her Aura away like she was fighting someone as heavy hitting like Ruby? Her only option now was to use her Semblance and flee.

Leaving behind a shadow clone to take the fall for her, she quickly slipped passed them and ran as fast as she could. Scaling walls and jumping off rooftops to escape the growing mob. A mob that was now shooting at her general direction and throwing molotov cocktails towards her as well.

Why would they attack her? She was unarmed and she did try to appear as non-threatening as possible. Then why would they attack her? Was it a misunderstanding on her part? Surely it wasn't _that_.

She squashed her thoughts as self preservation took precedence. She needed a good vantage point. Maybe the slums were the only place that was hostile to non-locals? Yes, perhaps it was just that.

Climbing up towards the highest spire in the district, she propped herself up to get a better view. She could see other districts in the area-

As a large, ebony, eldritch hand swatted her away of the spire, sending her spiraling towards the ground. Just looking at the being sent throbbing pain throughout her head, momentarily forgetting what situation she was in. This thing wasn't something anyone should ever want to look at. This thing wasn't something anyone- _anyone_ should ever look at. Just glancing at it defiled her very being. Just this thing in her memories tainted her soul.

This creature was vile.

This creature was malicious.

This creature only saw other beings as insects to be swatted away.

This _thing_ was evil.

Her last glance at the creature gave her a vision of what it is. Or what her mind could comprehend. A large monstrous entity with a spider-like body with numerous hands ending with six fingers that could easily crush anyone caught easily in its grasp. With or without Aura. Lastly, a fly-like Grimm mask with bulging, bulbous eyes balefully staring at her falling body before quickly dissipating into thin air.

* * *

Her body hit the ground with an audible crack. Pain lanced throughout her body as she tried to move. She couldn't. Not even so much as a twitch from a finger.

Gasping for air, her eyes twitched and quivered as she could only cough up blood. Her clothes sticking to her figure as blood pooled all over her.

' _I-'_

Darkness enveloping her vision.

' _I'm dying.'_

Blake couldn't find peace in herself as her life slowly ebbed. She wanted to do more. Be more. She wanted equality for both Faunus and Humans, and all she could do now is lie in her own pool of blood waiting for the inevitable to happen. She didn't want to die like this. She still had so much to do, dammit!

' _I'm sorry.'_

The pain stopped as a new sensation filled her.

Cold.

' _Ruby, Yang…'_

So cold.

' _Weiss… I am so sorry...'_

The vision of the sun slowly receding to the nothingness that crept onto the last fragments of her yellow orbs.

Blake Belladonna could only curse herself as the darkness engulfed her. All she could do now was to dream. Dream a better life.

* * *

"Good Hunter."

A book closed shut as blue orbs, obscured by a pair of glasses, looked directly at quicksilver ones.

"Yes?" Blonde locks fell as a tilt of a head indicated confusion. The book was gingerly put onto the nearest desk. Blue still gazing onto quicksilver. No malicious intent were sent upon both pairs of eyes but only love and admiration.

"It seems that we have a guest." A wooden hand quickly grabbed onto a dark red bonnet, as silver hair and bonnet covered the blushing face of the speaker. Breaking away from the blue orbs as she tried to conspicuously avert her gaze from the Good Hunter.

Not noticing the the fidgeting of the other person, the Good Hunter simply stood up from the wheelchair. Using a sheathed katana as a crutch, they grabbed a black coat to cover up, since having only a simple white shirt and trousers to wear to meet new people was deemed rude in these parts. At least that's what the she insisted.

"Good Hunter, Please do not try to stand. You are still injured. Please sit down and I will guide you to our new guest."

"Nonsense, Doll. It's time to meet new faces and if they're here-well I guess that makes them our-the Workshop's first student! Besides, I guess we'll have to be the welcoming party either way and I at least want to look healthy and strong." Huffing and crossing their arms as if to muster a pouting expression, the other person-the Doll could only giggle slightly at the Good Hunter's- _her_ Good Hunter's antics.

"Very well then. As long as you don't overexert yourself." Offering her porcelain hand to the Good Hunter. They eagerly took it. The Doll's silver braid slowly shifting on their left shoulder as they both walked towards the garden. Both of them smiling at each other. Eager to meet their first student.

Walking out towards the Workshop's garden filled with white lilies, they saw the most peculiar sight.

It was an ebony haired girl lying face down onto the garden steps. Clothes caked in dried blood and cat ears occasionally twitching as if to match the rise and fall of the girl's chest.

"This is quite odd, Good Hunter."

The blonde glanced at the Doll then back to the slumbering girl. A callous hand slowly combed through the relatively short hair, as if contemplating what situation they are in. Sighing, the Good Hunter loosened their grip on the katana and slackened their posture.

"This is gonna be real weird when she wakes up."

* * *

 **Author Notes: So.. Uhh... This is my first ever fanfic. This story has been stewing in my mind for a while now and I wanted to put those thoughts into words. I may not be good at writing yet but I'm working on improving my writing abilities. Criticism is welcome, hell, I encourage it.**

 **See you in chapter two.**

 **Excerpt is from on dreams; under content and visuals.**


	2. Hunter's Dream

**Edit: Line thingies now replace the page breakers.**

* * *

 **The Night Unfurls**

 **Chapter 1**

 **Hunter's Dream**

* * *

Blake felt horrible. She wasn't sure why she felt horrible. The only thing she was completely sure of was the fact that her _everything_ hurt like hell. It felt like she had a drunken fist fight with an Ursa Major and then proceeded to have a brawl with Yang without any Aura left. Needless to say, she was having a bad day.

Trying to use her Aura to stabilize her throbbing head, she concentrated on its healing capabilities. To her surprise it didn't work. ' _I'm probably running on fumes now. But why? I don't remember… Anything...'_

Images of memories flowed through her. She was at Vale going back to Beacon just after she bought the newest edition of Ninjas of Love. After that there was static. Then she woke up in some sickroom in a decrepit city. The citizens attacked her, then there was _that thing._

It was just a blob of blackness in her memory but she knows what it was. How it loathed humans. How it manifested itself as an evil amalgamation. How it looked at _her._ Just knowing this, it felt like she was a bit enlightened. Just a tad bit…

Insightful.

...

' _I should have died…'_

Memories of falling came next. The immense pain she felt -is still feeling. The darkness overcoming her. The feeling of regret and guilt.

' _How..? How am I not dead?'_

Pain slowly dissipating as her senses came together. Her face felt cold as the stone floor slowly transferred its heat onto her face. Stone floor? Was she still on the streets of the decrepit city?

Eyes cracking open to the moonlight of the shattered moon. She was in a garden filled with nothing but white lilies -bar of course the gravestones that accompanied the ivory flowers. What is with all of the stupid gravestones and gardens?

Cat ears twitching as she heard footsteps drawing closer. The slight breeze that she felt wash over her head indicated that she wasn't wearing her bow. A slight pang of panic overcame her but she willed herself to calm down. These people already saw what she is. _'There's no use hiding what I am to whoever these are...'_

Craning her head slightly -wincing at the pain that ran across her neck- to look at whoever was coming to greet her.

It was two people.

...

Blinking the fatigue out of her eyes, she saw two women.

The taller of the two was pale. As impossibly pale as the purest of marble. She wore a quaint maroon dress. The dress itself was obscured by a maroon cloak that had quite the exquisite embroidery. Her hair was mostly covered by a dark red bonnet. A silver braid hung loosely on her shoulder as quicksilver eyes darted to and from Blake and their companion. Hands hanging loosely to her side as white sleeves and red fingerless gloves finished the outfit. Her hands were…

' _They look like an antique doll's hands… Probably cybernetics? But why would anyone model it to quite an antiquated aesthetic?'_

She turned her gaze towards the shorter person. They were at least a head shorter than the one dressed in maroon. Short blonde hair pulled back. Blue hardened eyes hid behind thick rimmed glasses. A black long coat hanging loosely on her shoulders covered most of the white dress shirt and dark trouser she wore. What she wore was more practical -more fitting since this person stood her ground like a seasoned Huntress. The comparison to Miss Goodwitch or a hardened Jaune was not lost.

The katana and the holstered antique pistol made her muscles tense. She doesn't have the Aura or energy to fight. No, she couldn't fight. Not in this state.

The grip on the katana loosened and Blake could only sigh in relief as she sensed the tension in the air die down. Noticing the slight limp on the shorter one's steps, the taller one snaked her hand down the shorter one's waist as to support them.

' _Guess it's time to stop wallowing on the dirt now…'_

"Uggh..." As she was trying to prop herself up, her hands caved in and she fell face first onto the stone floor. Again.

' _Welp, that was lame.'_

Sighing as loud as she can, she closed her eyes again and hoped that these people would help her.

* * *

"Perhaps we should help her?"

The Hunter stared dryly to her companion. Her hand slowly letting go of the Doll's waist. "Yes. That would be great."

The Doll, quickly nodding, hurried to the dark haired beast girl's side. Taking the girl's hand and slinging it onto her own shoulder, she propped the girl up. Bright yellow orbs met with the Hunter's own blue ones. Chapped lips slowly opening as if to say somethi-

"Jaune?"

"Pardon?"

The dark haired beast girl blinked rapidly, "Oh. I'm sorry. You looked like someone I know." Cat ears laying flat as if in shame. Why was that?

"Doll, bring her inside the Workshop." Sighing and scratching the back of her head, she turned and looked towards the Workshop, "The shock of dying in the waking world probably hasn't worn off yet."

Gripping the sheathed katana, she used it as a makeshift cane as she limped towards the Workshop entrance. Her steps slow but sure. Squaring her shoulders as if to convey a sense of superiority to her first student.

' _This gonna be the hardest part. She's confused and still in shock. How would I explain things to her? Will I do this to all the potential Hunter recruits?'_

Sighing, she slowly stopped walking as she's still in deep thought. _'There's no use complaining now. This was my decision to be a teacher to all who came by the Dream.'_

The Doll passed by her with the beast girl leaning towards the Doll's shoulder. The Doll's gaze went towards the Hunter for a quick moment before nodding in agreement to her previous command.

Gehrman's Workshop -her Workshop now- stood proudly in the Dream. A small mansion amidst an endless sea of white lilies and small creeks. The last time she saw the Workshop in all its glory, among the stone steps and the gravestones of her predecessors, it was burning. Burned by Gehrman's hatred towards the Dream.

Shaking the thoughts of her old mentor away, her gaze went back to the Workshop.

It was quaint and old but it was hers.

* * *

Blake was now lying on some sort of couch inside the small mansion. As the taller one dragged her hobbling form earlier, she forcefully made herself scan every nook and cranny of the quaint Workshop. There were guns and melee weapons in every gothic shape imaginable mounted on a lot of the walls or even just lazily lying on the floor. Rapiers, swords, spears, muskets, pistols, zweihanders, a _massive_ _pizza cutter thing,_ and a naval cannon _of all things_ greeted her.

' _I can totally see Ruby drooling just from looking at all these weapons. She'll have a field day if she was here…'_

She already missed her team even though it only felt like she was only away for a day. Team RWBY was her family that always welcomed her with warm, open arms. They were the only family she's ever had. And now she misses them dearly.

Turning to her side, she saw the tall woman tending to her. Her cold, porcelain like hands securing Blake onto the couch. Attempting to make the Faunus as comfortable as possible. Well, as comfortable as someone with a aching pains all over her body.

"W-water… Please..." Blake gasped out the words. Her throat more dry than she would have expected.

Quicksilver eyes glanced over at Blake then darted around the room. Acquiring her target on the shorter one's hand -when did she get here?

The shorter woman handed the glass of water to the taller one. A porcelain hand grasped it and moved the glass near Blake's mouth. Hastily grabbing the glass and gulping the water in mere moments, her throat felt relieved. Gasping out a "thank you" as she asked for more.

After having her fill of the heavenly liquid, she felt the need to get some answers. She needed to feed her curiosity. She was far too confused for her own liking.

Before she could ever say anything, she felt a slight sting on her leg. Glancing down towards her leg, she saw the taller woman injecting a small vial of red viscous liquid into her. Before she could protest however, the pain that invaded throughout her body quickly left as the last of the liquid was emptied into her.

She felt good; energized even. Fatigue was now replaced with renewed energy. A quick mental check on her Aura told her that it wasn't even back to a third of its maximum capacity. This was odd to her. Dust infused injections were quite common in the Grimm Hunting business. They were used to stimulate and even accelerate the Aura's healing capabilities; a side effect of these injections were also accelerating the recovery of lost Aura. If it wasn't a Dust injection then what was it?

She propped herself up in a sitting position. It was now time to ask questions, but first-

"What was that? The stuff you injected me? That felt good. It took away the aches and my splitting migraine."

"It was blood, Young Hunter." It was the taller woman that answered. She now stood beside the shorter woman, acting as support to her.

' _But surely it wasn't blood. That doesn't make any Dust damn sense!'_

"Why would _blood_ -"

The shorter woman cut her off with a gesture with her hand. "I'm sure we can play twenty questions, but first..." she smiled faintly and offered her hand to Blake. "Let us introduce ourselves. My name is Eleanor de la Albertine. You can call me Eleanor. And this here..." she gestured towards the taller woman who bowed deeply, "well… She doesn't have name -wouldn't take one even, but I call her Doll. So who are you?"

"Blake. Blake Belladonna."

"Well then Blake. Now what-"

Blake cut off Eleanor with the same gesture that she used against her. "Well if we're playing twenty questions, I believe it's my turn now." Blake could only smirk as she used Weiss Schnee Interrupt version five, using the opposing person's words against them. "Now… Why would blood help me heal?"

...

Eleanor could only stare flatly, as if the answer was the most obvious thing in Remnant. The Doll stifled her giggles as she tried to compose herself. Blake could only puff her cheeks in annoyance and use Ruby Rose Pout version two.

"Ahem. Moving on…" Shrugging the distracting pout, Eleanor still held the dry stare directed towards Blake.

"The blood here in Yharnam has... Strange properties. As you've seen, the blood heals us. Some.." Eleanor gestured to both Blake and her, "...are even sustained by it. Hunters even drink the blood of their fallen prey to heal themselves while out on a hunt. As for myself, I can live off of the blood alone. I do not need to drink, eat, and only sleep occasionally. The blood even is… Intoxicating to most people. I, myself, am guilty of getting high off the blood shed on a hunt." Eleanor's hand trembled a bit but it stopped as the Doll's hand intertwined as they both found comfort with each other's presence.

"Intoxicating… Intoxicating..." Ignoring the blatant display of affection, Blake could only parrot the word repeatedly. Her short contact with the blood already resonated with her. Should it be disturbing? Surely it had to be.

' _Sustained by blood? I should be disgusted but why…? Why does this feel so… natural to me?'_

"Yes. Quite intoxicating… Continuing on… I believe it's my turn to ask a question." Combing her hand through her blond hair in embarrassment, she gestured towards Blake's ears -her cat ears. The obvious Goliath in the room.

"What are you?"

"Oh. That." Blake could only shuffle on the couch uncomfortably. "I-I… I'm… a Faunus."

…

A "What now?" and a "Gazuntite." were the only response she got from the Doll and Eleanor respectively.

"A Faunus? You know… Humans with animal features…? Don't you have any Faunus here?" Blake shuffled uncomfortably again as she tried to compose herself.

It was the Doll who broke the silence. "I thought you were infected with another strain of the Beast Plague."

Cat ears and yellow eyes could only twitch in annoyance with the Doll's remark. Before she could react however it was Eleanor who broke the tension in the room.

"I apologize on Doll's behalf. She's a bit naive and… to be honest, she doesn't know better." This response earned Eleanor a slap at the back of her head and a "Hmph" from the person in question.

"Well… I can explain most of it. But we'll be here for a while." Blake gestured towards the spot on the couch beside her. Eleanor promptly plopped down while the Doll merely took a nearby chair for her.

' _This is gonna take a while._ '

* * *

It indeed took a while for Belladonna to explain everything. She told Eleanor and Doll everything she could about the Faunus. Their history, their culture, their mistreatment, and how the world viewed them. They were treated as slaves in the majority of their history. Doll could only gasp out in disgust as Belladonna continued on talking about the oppression her kind has endured. They were misunderstood and treated harshly because they were different from everyone else.

There were rebellions of course. Belladonna was a part of one of them. She called them the White Fang. A peaceful movement during its early days but slowly and gradually turned into a violent terrorist group that had the blood of innocents on its hands. Belladonna resented them and ran away, trying to forge her own destiny with her own hands instead.

This struck a cord in Eleanor's heart. She was a descendant of one of the noble bloodlines of Cainhurst. People resented her whenever she passed by a village that wasn't affiliated with Cainhurst. The looks and jeers people gave. People treated her and her kind differently as well just because of the quality of her blood. Vileblood. That's what they called her and her kind. It didn't matter if she had the purest of hearts, all they ever saw was the Vileblood that she was.

Sadly, she and a handful of others are the last of their kind. She was still a babe when it happened. She was too young to actually comprehend what had happened, but as she grew older, she slowly uncovered the truth. Yharnam's Church Hunters were sent to wipe out every last one of them. The Vilebloods naturally retaliated but it was all for naught. It was genocide.

Shaking the thoughts of her kind away from her mind, Eleanor urged Blake to continue on with their conversation.

They talked about the Beasts and monsters that roam and own the streets of Yharnam. How the beasts' only real purpose was to hunt, maim, and kill human beings. Belladonna likened it to Grimm. The creatures that plagued her homeland -or homeworld. They already came to that conclusion -but Eleanor actively opted out any information about the Old Ones- after all, the Dream itself and the various nightmares that plagued Yharnam were small worlds created as playgrounds for the Old Ones. How likely was it that there was a world that mirrored her own but was also completely alien? With the Old Ones? Highly likely.

Eleanor kept the knowledge of the Old Ones away from Belladonna. She didn't need to know godly beings that pulled the strings of fate. She was far too young to know any of the horrors of the cosmos.

Their conversation led to another similarity between their cultures; Hunters, or in their world, Huntsmen and Huntresses. Their methods for war were different -spirit energy she called Aura and the blood flows endlessly in the nightly hunts- but their goal was the same. To cull and slay the beasts that threaten humanity.

Eleanor assured the Huntress-in-training that she would find a way to bring her back to homeworld. If the Dream was able to drag Belladonna away from a different realm, surely it had the same capabilities, right? Gehrman must have had this knowledge lying around somewhere. All she needed to do was uncover it somewhere in the Workshop. She was sure the answer resided here. Her instincts told her as much. And if it wasn't here, then it should be somewhere that was associated with the Yharnam Church. They're people who spent their every sane moment studying the cosmos afterall!

When the lengthy conversation finished, Doll ushered and forced Belladonna to the baths, giving her some of the clothes that Hunter recruits usually wore. The Workshop was filled with those clothes. Maybe Gehrman was expecting more recruits other than Eleanor? It doesn't matter, everything was hers now.

* * *

Blake got out of the baths wearing what the Doll provided except the facemask was left hanging loosely on her neck like a scarf. The bow fabric she tied on her arm now in its proper place; hiding her cat ears. She left the tricorn hat behind. It looked too ridiculous to wear. She was far too embarrassed to wear it.

As she turned to corner towards the foyer, her hidden cat ears twitched as she picked up Eleanor and the Doll's conversation.

"Do you think it's time to pop the question to Belladonna now?"

"I think it would be best, Good Hunter."

There was loud clanging sounds as Eleanor shuffled around the room. Then there was a loud thud as a lot of clanging sounds came and, from what Blake could assume, the weapons mounted on one of the walls fell everywhere. When Blake came into the Doll and Eleanor's view she could only sigh as Eleanor was lying flat on her butt as the Doll tried to help her up. Various weapons strewn around her.

"I found it!" Eleanor was swinging around a sword. It had two blades intertwined like a double helix.

' _I think it's time to make my presence known.'_

"Ahem, excuse me? What's with all this mess?"

Eleanor quickly hid the sword behind her as she stood weakly, wobbling around until the Doll held her and offered her the sheathed katana she used as a cane.

"Ohh.. Uhh… Something special. Belladonna, why don't you come here?"

Blake made her way towards the blonde woman hesitantly. They were acting too suspicious. "So…" Blake hesitated as she chose her words. "What do you need of me?" Even though they were suspicious, Blake was still quite curious.

The blonde squared her shoulder and composed herself. A mask of professionalism washed over her and overtook her face. She took the sword out of it's not so great hiding place, took her pistol out of her holster. She offered Both things to the Faunus.

The Doll took out a small journal with an odd symbol on it. It looked like a man hanging upside down. She also offered it to Blake.

Pushing her glasses up, Eleanor coughed lightly and she willed herself into a stance that could only be described as being similar to the one Glynda Goodwitch usually took. Form rigid and stern.

"My Workshop has one purpose; and that one purpose is to produce fine Hunters to cull the beast plague and to collect any knowledge that was lost in Yharnam. The Dream does not choose lightly, Belladonna. It has chosen you for a reason. It will be horrifying. You can lose your grip on the world. You can succumb to the intoxicating bloodlust. You will die, and die, and die, and die until you can no longer continue. You can very well lose your sanity." Eleanor paused to let the words she spoke sink in.

"So I ask this of you; will you be this Workshop's and this crippled Hunter's first student?"

Blake could only smirk as she took the items that was offered to her. As her grip on the blade tightened, it's name was etched onto her mind.

The Blade of Mercy.

She took a deep breath and a moment later flashed a feral grin.

"Tonight, Blake Belladonna joins the hunt."

* * *

 **Author's Notes:**

 **Some fluff because we definitely need it.**

 **I'll be taking a few liberties with the story. Like, for example, the state of the world right now is in a New Game+. The Hunter took the "Honoring Wishes" ending and has replaced Gehrman as the Old Hunter Mentor. And because of this Blake has now taken the seat of Player Character and will go through the "modified" state of Yharnam.**

 **The Hunter's Dream to me feels like it should much, much larger than in the base game. I mean, in game terms, it makes sense for it to be that size since it's only a hub area. But, realistically since it trained hunters, shouldn't it be like at least the size of a small mansion instead of a cabin? And, of course, since it's in a dream shouldn't it be like an endless sea of** _ **something**_ **?**

 **And I would like to think that since Hunters bound to the Dream can die and resurrect willy-nilly, wouldn't eating and drinking be beyond them? The Dream already sustains them. I know the whole die-rez thing is gameplay thing but I'm trying to make sense of what things are; in a story perspective that is.**

 **The Hunter here is somewhat based on the bloodtinge build that I was running for a while. Chikage hype is best hype.**

 **At this point what Blake has right now is a modified Yharnam Hunter Set. Don't really know when she should get a new set or even if should have a new outfit.**

 **The Team RWBY mannerisms (Weiss Schnee Interrupt, Ruby Rose Pout, and so on) will mostly be less prevalent but Blake would occasionally use them since I think it's adorable if Blake picked up her team's quirks.**

 **Ohh and Blake has essentially inherited The Hunter's weapons and equipment. We really don't want to see her grind blood vials now, do we?**

 **See you in chapter two.**


	3. Cleric Beast

**Edit: Added the line thingies.**

* * *

 **The Night Unfurls**

 **Chapter 2**

 **Cleric Beast**

* * *

 _Journal Entry Number 1_

 _It has been a few days since I decided to take up Eleanor's offer and train to become a beast hunter under her tutelage. She was a Hunter prodigy just like Ruby. Strong enough to survive, best, and usurp the first Hunter to have ever taken up arms against the beast plague. Someone named Gehrman._

 _This Gehrman was also the person who made the Doll. She's some sort of android made of porcelain. But she can only exist inside the Dream._

 _The Dream is some sort of pocket dimension tied to the city of Yharnam, or at least that's what Eleanor told me. The Dream sustains everyone bound to it. Not needing to eat, drink, and having sleep optional was a bit disorienting at first but I've already started getting used to. Although consuming blood still needs some time getting used to. Wrapping my head around a different dimension's rules that govern it is still quite difficult._

 _I guess I should be proud to be Remnant's first inter-dimensional traveller but it feels so hollow. I guess I just miss my team._

 _Well anyway… At first we started with some combat training._

 _I took it upon myself to go easy on my senior seeing as she was crippled. How I was sorely mistaken. She ducked and weaved through all of my attacks with ease, disabling and punishing me with devastating attacks whenever I tried to use my Semblance. She always seemed to know whenever I use it. Always shooting all of my shadow clones with her firearm before they could do any real damage and would quickly counter all of my oncoming attacks._

 _Her fighting style reminds me of Adam. Elegant and ruthless. Always seeking to draw blood and let the sword drink in thirstily. But Eleanor was different from Adam. She had perfect control of her emotions. She fights not for herself or her selfish desire for violence, but for the good of the people and to cull the darkness that threatens the light. A small ember in a world of bloody evolution. She was the spitting image of a true Huntress. A person that would garner the attention of any and all aspiring heroes._

"Young Hunter!" Blake stopped writing on her journal as the Doll called out to her. "The Good Hunter wishes to speak with you!"

"Give me a few minutes!" She shouted out in reply. "I'm just finishing up an entry in my journal!" It was imperative to collect any and all thoughts and information, or at least that's what Eleanor told Blake.

 _I have familiarized myself with the weapons she provided. The Blade of Mercy, a sword with a double helix-like blades that splits into two daggers, and the Evelyn, a simple long barrel musket-pistol that has quite the intricate carvings and aesthetic. The odd thing about the pistol is that it shoots mercury and sometimes coagulated blood. The weapons here are odd._

 _Aside from combat, there's also studies about the beasts. At first I thought that these were Grimm that adapted differently because of the environment, but it seems like they're a whole different brand of monsters entirely. They were all humans once, just mutated by the plague and blood. How this process works I do not know nor do I wish to uncover. This was another reminder that I was no longer in Remnant._

 _Dust also does not exist here. Such a society without the most vital building block of civilization was never heard of or even theorised in Remnant That's probably why their technology here is quite primitive.! It was an impossibility that has never occurred anyone but somehow, people here managed to survive._

 _But perhaps "surviving" is too strong of a word. As I've heard from Eleanor, the war against the beasts were not faring well when she took over the Workshop. The Beast plague has overrun Yharnam and the outskirts of the city was not faring well as one could hope. It was only time that holds back the plague from spreading throughout their world. I shudder to think that this was how the Grimm started. Perhaps not, but now is not the time to think about this._

 _Eleanor has promised me to find everything about inter-dimensional travel that she could scrounge up in the Workshop. If she couldn't find anything, then it's up to me to find out whatever I can in Yharnam._

 _End of Entry Number 1_

Blake closed the small journal and clipped it onto her holster on the left side of her belt. Wiping the fatigue and drowsiness of her gold eyes she stood up from where she rested and cast her gaze towards where she was resting. It was the large tree that sent its omnipresent shadow that covered the Workshop's massive graveyard.

It was familiar and also disconcerting to Blake that such a place that was dedicated to protecting had so much history and blood buried underneath her feet. Perhaps it was ironic; an ex-terrorist turned protector of the people

Dusting herself off, she started walking towards the small mansion. Weak winds buffeting her. The Blade of Mercy clanging lightly on the modest sheath that was attached on her right. Onyx hair and a half cloak on her left side weakly swaying to the rhythm of the wind. Her long skirt-like coat tails faintly touching the white lilies that covered almost every surface of the Workshop's graveyard. The moonlight of the shattered moon only accentuated the dull glow that the flowers reflected back into the abyss of the cosmos.

"I hope it's not too important."

* * *

In the few days that Eleanor has spent training Belladonna, it was clear that she was well trained and well versed in the art of war. It should have been expected if the world she came from was similar to this one. After all, she is but a child but has the experience of a hardened soldier. And the soul magic she called Aura.

' _She has shown exceptional skill in combat and can adapt to the flow of it. She's ready.'_

It was time to send Belladonna to explore Yharnam.

Eleanor's own time was not spent solely on training the Faunus however. The past few days scouring Gehrman's vast library has yielded some information about dimensional travel. But it wasn't enough. Scraps of information would lead them nowhere. And so, Eleanor has deemed it necessary for plan B. Belladonna was to secure any and all information she could find on the subject matter. Byrgenwerth may as well have what they needed; or perhaps it could be somewhere at a Church Workshop? It didn't matter. Belladonna in Yharnam was only the surface of the plan. It is merely a diversion as it was the only way she could keep Belladonna away from what she truly needed to do.

' _Gods, I hate doing this.'_

Eleanor had to converse with _The_ Moon Presence.

She hated the vile cosmic entity. The machinations of this cruel creature was the reason for the hunt. The _Hunt._ The Hunt for other Great Ones. The Hunt that had Yharnam as an unfortunate collateral damage. But it had to be done. Eleanor was now its prisoner, confidant, and surrogate child. She had to do this. For Belladonna first -her first and best student- and for her own machinations second. Besides, an Albertine never goes back on her word, and her pride as descendant of the Cainhurst bloodline would never allow it.

The Hunter's thoughts were disrupted as Belladonna and Doll entered the Workshop's vast library. The vastness of the tome ridden room was quite baffling. It felt like an eldritch location that just kept churning out book after book for the Dream's occupants, but she knew it wasn't the case. It was just that Eleanor hadn't spent that much time with books back when she was still a child. Running away and avoiding discrimination would tend to do that to people. The eldritch location aside, she has been spending too much time inside the maze-like room. Her free time now consumed to gather information for her student. She will admit though, she was quite curious about other worlds that the cosmos held.

Eleanor's brow lifted slightly as Belladonna and Doll stopped on their tracks as they both stared at the woman in question. It was the Doll who broke the pregnant pause.

"Good Hunter?"

"Yes Doll?"

" _What_ are you holding?" Glancing down her hands, she saw what she was clasping unconsciously. The velvet of the book cover not helping what was written in emblazoned gold letters, _"How to Pick Up Fair Maidens: Prepare to Court with Young Nobles and Younger Maidens Edition"_.

' _Abort! Abort! Abort! Fission Mailed!'_

Eleanor gaped as her mouth opened then closed it. She did this repeatedly for a few seconds, mimicking a dying fish gasping desperately for sweet oxygen before saying, "It's not what it looks like!", then promptly tossing the book as far as she could in the deepest depths of the eldritch library. "Half the books Gehrman has are those! There's an _entire_ wing dedicated to those!" Her shrieks of desperation were ignored as Doll covered her face with her maroon bonnet while mumbling incessantly. Casting the blue orbs gaze to her student, she was crestfallen to see Belladonna's eye's and cat ears twitching in disgust. Today was not her day.

Forcing whatever dignity she had left, the blonde stood tall and proud. Lifting her precious sheathed katana, she pounded the weapon on the hardwood floor. The noise was loud enough to stop both her companions out of their stupor. Belladonna shook her disgruntled expression away as she took a much more professional stance. Doll stopped her incessant mumblings about marriage and straightened herself up and tried to look as stoic as she could muster. The clanging and banging of the sheathed blade echoed throughout the walls of the eldritch library then through the hallways of the Workshop. This effectively silenced the entirety of everyone and everything in the Dream.

"Ahem. _Belladonna_ , I think it's time…" She looked towards her student. Determination now filled those burning golden eyes. Impressionable those eyes may be, those were the eyes of an experienced fighter. She had complete confidence that her student would be able to survive the cruelty of Yharnam and all the beasts that has infested the once great bastion of medical knowledge. "It's time for you to participate in the hunt. Yharnam awaits."

Quicksilver orbs met blue ones. Both giving as much expression the two pairs held a silent conversation together.

' _Are you sure she is ready?'_

' _Of course she is. Any student of mine would be. Don't worry, she'll be fine.'_

' _If you say so. I'll put my faith on our Young Hunter.'_

Doll gave in to her Hunter's persuasiveness. It was the blonde who made the decision regarding the hunt. Doll did see the potential in Belladonna, but it was her protectiveness that hindered what Eleanor planned. But it didn't matter; both of them knew that they have to send their precious student to Yharnam. A hunter _must_ hunt beasts after all.

Belladonna blinked a few times as she was still processing what she heard from her teacher.

Steeling her resolve, her yellow eyes met with her blonde teacher's blue ones. "Okay." Taking in a deep breath she set her mind to it. "I'll do it. What do I need to look for?"

Ending the silent conversation, Eleanor's gaze went back to Belladonna. There was a slight pause as she pondered on what she should say. "I want you to go and find whatever you can about inter-dimensional travel." Taking in a small breath, she continued, "There isn't that much information here so I was hoping you could find tomes or anything about the subject matter. A Church Workshop would do nicely, but if you feel confident enough, Byrgenwerth should hold information what you need."

Immediately after Eleanor's briefing of the mission for the Faunus, Doll interrupted Belladonna to add more for her objectives. "Remember to slaughter any and all beasts in your path."

"Okay. I can do that." Belladonna replied.

"Do you have everything you need?" A hunter must always be prepared for any situation that presents itself to them.

"I just need to get some throwing knives and pack all of the stuff I need inside my pack and I should be good to go."

There was a small smile that slowly appeared on the veteran Hunter. She gestured to the door leading outside of the Workshop. "Doll will help you pack your things. I'll be waiting in the courtyard near where we first found you."

Belladonna gave a small bow before going in the direction of her room and the porcelain woman following closely beside her. This was the moment where the student would be thrown towards the fire and see if they survive.

' _At least this time she has a better fighting chance. Unlike how I started out.'_

It was now time to start the hunt.

* * *

Blake was nervous. Nervousness was her worst enemy -it was the worst enemy of all Huntsman and Huntresses. Fear was the main killer in anyone in the hunting business. But if she was going to Yharnam, then will she have to kill the infected denizens. Was it necessary? Would it be wrong if she did slay them? _'Stop thinking about it. They're basically zombies now. There's nothing I can do about it. This is mercy for them.'_

She was a Huntress turned Workshop Hunter. If giving mercy to the sick under her care was the only way to protect the people under her care, then this was her job now. It was a necessary evil that she had to commit to. But if it was mercy to the poor Yharnamites, then she would willingly embrace this evil.

She had to do this. She had to do this so she can see her team -her family- again; The first family she has ever had. She was just a mere pawn in White Fang, nothing but a tool for the cause. But with team RWBY -with Beacon- she was free to be herself. She was a lost orphan who found happiness among the friends who took her in with open arms.

She misses them dearly; so _so_ dearly. And if killing in self defense or as a conscientious decision was the only way to see them once more, then there wasn't any decision to make. She had to do this.

' _I need to do this.'_

Blake let out a long, dragging sigh as she strengthened her resolve and continued on her packing. Eleanor, Weiss, the time the Faunus spent in Beacon, and the White Fang did drill in her mind that a Hunter/Huntress/soldier must always be prepared for anything and everything. "Never know what'll happen next" was now drilled into her mind and how she treated Grimm hunts. Hopefully beast hunts were similar.

Mercury bullets went on easy to access pockets. A couple of blood vials for healing were secured safely in the stronger, sturdier bandolier pockets. The healing liquid needed to be in a safe location after all. More of these essentials inside the leather messenger bag she had to carry around.

A whetstone went inside the bag, along with some cloth and a lighter to make Mistrali -or rather Molotov cocktails. Beasts were weak to fire after all.

Throwing knives went on the various bandoliers around her body. Firearms can't be trusted here to snipe or do long ranged attacks or sneak attacks. A sturdy Aura enhanced throw of a throwing knife was her only option now or if Eleanor would stop hoarding bone marrow ash for firearms then there would be that. But knowing her teacher, she probably would not part with the firearm enhancement ash for ridiculous reasons.

Pine resins that bestowed elemental properties to weapons akin to Dust were put inside some of the farther reaching pockets; for safety of course. Eleanor did tell her to bring some, even though they weren't necessary for the Blade of Mercy because of the metal that was used to make it. Maybe if she picked up a sidearm or a temporary weapon would the resins be relevant? Or was it for traps? Bah! Whatever works.

For some reason, her blonde teacher did always stress to bring a couple of pebbles. She still couldn't understand this line of thinking. If anything, if she wanted a distraction, her shadow clones would do the trick nicely. Sighing in annoyance, she put some of the circular, eyeball shaped pebbles in one of the many pockets of her bandoliers. _'A small pebble found throughout_ everywhere _. Can be thrown at foes. Quite thrilling.'_

The older Hunter had some odd quirks.

Lastly were the Bold Hunter's Marks that went inside the pack. She could use them if she wanted go back to the Dream, however that sorcery worked. She could barely understand how these runes were suppose to help her.

"Young Hunter, are you done?" the Doll asked to Blake as she entered the huntress-in-training's room.

Taking the leather messenger bag and slinging it on her back, Blake stood up and her yellow eyes met with the Doll's quicksilver orbs. "Yeah, I am. Should we get going?"

"Yes, we should." was the simple reply the Doll gave. Both Faunus and the porcelain woman walked outside to the Workshop's courtyard.

* * *

Eleanor's blue eyes caught a glimpse of Doll and her student walking towards her as she was having a conversation with the Dream's inhabitants that Belladonna has not met yet.

Craning her head towards her student, she gestured for her to come closer. "Belladonna, I've got something to show you." Taking a few steps soundways, Belladonna finally saw the small humanoids that was gathering beside the Hunter's feet.

"What are they?" It was a simple question that Belladonna asked.

"I'll do my best to explain it to you." Eleanor took a deep breath as she prepared for her long winded explanation. "They are called Messengers. Messengers act as intermediaries between the hunters. They are inhabitants of the Dream, just like us. They adore and obey us Hunters. Hunters bound by the Dream use these tiny creatures to send messages to each other. We'll use them to talk to each other while you're out on a hunt. It's another convenience we have access to."

"Seems like a much more primitive CCT…" Belladonna mumbled to herself.

"I didn't quite hear you." A blatant lie, but Eleanor didn't want to dig up memories of her student's homeworld. It might bring up melancholy and that will disrupt the mission.

"Huh? Oh... " Blinking a few times in contemplation and thinking up an excuse, she finally asked. "How do we do that? Communicating from here to Yharnam, I mean."

"Quite simple actually. Give them a note, a piece of paper, an object, or what-have-you and just tell them who to give it to." It was always quite a convenience to use this method to communicate to other hunters out in the field as well, but at this point Eleanor would not entrust her student to Hunters she doesn't know personally. And it is much more convenient if the Faunus made her own connections in Yharnam. "If you want to call for them, just concentrate on their essence to come to you. Don't worry. It's all instinct with all Hunters bound to the Dream."

"That simple, huh?" The veteran Hunter could see the slight confusion on the onyx haired girl's face.

"Yes. Now it's time for you to go to Yharnam." The confusion only worsened on her student's face. "Just take your hand, touch the gravestone over there..." She gestured on the one that was on the edge of the steps. "and think of where you wish to awaken. The messengers will do the rest. I suggest where you first woke up in Yharnam."

Belladonna did so. Closing her eyes, she concentrated on where she would awaken. A porcelain hand clasped lightly on the Faunus' shoulder. After a few moments, the blonde's student had a dull glow that emanated throughout her body. The Doll began a small chant to bid farewell to the Young Hunter that was embarking on her first hunt.

"Oh Flora, of the moon, of the dream.

Oh little ones, Oh fleeting will of the ancients…

Let this hunter be safe, let them find comfort.

And let this dream, their captor…

…foretell a pleasant awakening…

...be one day, a fond, distant memory…"

A white light engulfed the Faunus as the messengers held onto her as they carried her being to the waking world. The light slightly blinded both Doll and Hunter as the porcelain woman's hold on the student was slowly waning.

The corporeal silhouette slowly faded into nothingness.

And so Belladonna was gone. Only wisps of white energy remain from where she once was.

Eleanor took in the moment that she just witnessed. The transportation to the waking world was always so exciting, even if she already saw this small ritual hundreds of times. But onto more important matters. Her first student was now on the waking world. Her first student now on a hunt and it was now time for the crippled Hunter to do her part next.

The part that makes her shudder whenever her mind wandered there.

' _The Moon Presence… My abomination of a deity for a surrogate parent...'_

Shattered moonlight and the Doll was now her only companions again.

Melancholy and nostalgia replaced the dread she felt whenever her thoughts wandered to her surrogate parent.

' _God's... I have to do this...'_

Looking towards the broken moon, her deep blue eyes closed in contemplation and her short blonde hair slightly swaying with the wind. Taking in a deep breath and releasing it, she found her resolve. It was time to do her part now.

"Oh Flora of the moon... Of this nightmare..."

* * *

Blake woke up with the scent of medicine and blood invading her strong sense of smell. It was disconcerting but at the very least familiar. What was also familiar was the cold embrace of the old hardwood floor that greeted the alabaster skin of her cheek.

Sighing, she lifted herself up and stood as tall as she could be. _'This is way better than last time.'_ She thought to herself. _'At least now I'm armed, ready, and I don't have Yang levels hungover.'_ Definitely better.

Looking around, she found out that she had a slight miscalculation on where she should awaken. She awoke just the room over where the gurney she slept in was. It was just a few steps of the stairs away. She decided against exploring the old building. Finding information on how to go back was her number one priority right now.

Before she could even get out of the room, her concealed cat ears twitched as she faintly heard something. It was someone humming a familiar tune. Swerving around and looking at the direction of the noise, she saw where it was emanating from; the sickroom upstairs. The room where everything started for her.

Unconscious steps were taken as she slowly crept from the stairs towards the sickroom. The tune was getting louder and louder as her ears picked up the familiar sound of humming. Her gait widened and her steps grew louder as she inched closer to the locked door. The humming grew louder as well. Her ears taking in the sound of a distinct voice creating the light humming.

No. It couldn't be.

It's impossible.

' _Pyrrha!'_

As soon as Blake came face-to-face with the door, the humming stopped. The dread coming out of the door was palpable. This dread overcame the Faunus as well. Cursing her unconscious, unstealthy steps, there was now only one option left now.

Her hand hovered slowly towards the locked door and it slowly started rapping the door lightly. "P-Pyrrha?" Her voice was shaky but she couldn't care less. "Hello? Are you there Pyr? It's me, Blake."

What happened next wasn't what she wanted at all.

"I-I apologize... I think you have the wr-wrong person..." The voice was Pyrrha's but Blake knew this was too good to be true. It didn't have the steel that the champion's voice had. No confidence or sense of assurance. People do have similar sounding voices sometimes. She could only blame her loneliness and longing to see -or even hear someone she knew. "My name is Iosefka. I own this clinic. A-are you a Hunter?"

' _She's not Pyrrha...'_

"I'm sorry, your voice sounded familiar." There was no need for wallowing when a Huntress was in a hunt. "Yes, I'm a Hunter. My name is Blake Belladonna. I'm sorry if I scared you."

' _Why did I even get my hopes up?'_

"It-it's no problem at all m-miss Belladonna. Friends are hard to come by these days…" There was a sound of metal sliding off as the door slightly opened. There was a chain that indicated that the reinforced wooden door was still locked. A cloth covering a small cylindrical shape slipped out of the small crack. "This is all I can offer. I'm terribly sorry."

It was a blood vial, but this was different from what she usually gets from Eleanor. It was thicker and just by looking at it, her throat was already dry longing for it. She quickly pocketed it together with her other vials inside one of the pockets of her bandolier.

"Don't be. This is more than enough. Thank you, Iosefka." Blake was grateful -truly she was-, but the familiarity was still mocking her. Mocking her sanity. Taunting her of her fate and the cruel forces that sent her here in Yharnam. Every word she heard was painful. This was too cruel for her to endure anymore. She had to _leave_.

' _I need to leave right now!'_

"G-Good luck with the h-hunt, miss Belladonna!" Blake was already inching away from the now newly locked door. Silent steps slowly moving away from the door. She wanted to leave. She needed to leave. _Right now_.

"Thank you. Goodbye."

She was sure what she said was barely audible to Iosefka. It can't be helped now. She didn't want to be here anymore. She needed to run away.

' _Everything is wrong.'_

And so she ran.

She let her emotions control her legs as she ran.

Blake was already outside the clinic's metal gate as the late afternoon sun was accentuating the few tears that escaped her golden orbs. This wasn't fair. Yharnam was not fair. It used what she needed dearly and bashed her emotions in. This wasn't fair at all.

Wiping the tears away, she calmed herself down. There was only one thought that invaded the forefront of her mind. The mission. The mission that will lead her back to her friends -her family- she misses dearly.

' _I don't need to think about anything else now…'_

It's just the mission now.

* * *

Blood spilled all over the stone road as a double helix blade pierced the torso of the hapless militiaman. The long barrel musket clattered loudly on the uneven stone of the road. A dark leather boot kicked the body away from the blade, decoupling it from the dead militiaman. The attacker swerved around as her onyx hair obscured her off-hand reaching towards the throwing knives on the various bandoliers she wore.

The rest of the patrol was taken aback by the surprise attack as their sniper dropped dead. Two attack dogs, another sniper, and a militiaman carrying a rusty cutlass responded as quickly as they could.

Three knives shot out from her hand and hit the other militiaman who was holding another long barrel musket. Two on the head and one at the throat. The musket sent out a crackling noise as the dead body gripped the trigger as a last sign of defiance from the second sniper.

A shadow clone took the damage from the flying musket ball that hit the clone directly on the chest. The mangy attack dogs leapt a moment later to seize their opportunity of an opening. The attacker took the opportunity as the attack dogs were still midair. The double helix blade decoupled into two curved daggers that slammed into the throats of the unsuspecting attack dogs.

Hurling the two dying dogs -with a help from her Aura enhanced strength- towards the militiaman with the cutlass. Using the flying bodies as platforms, the onyx haired attacker spun in a dance of death midair as the double daggers sliced the militiaman. The dance ended with the attacker landing behind the militiaman as the bodies of the dogs hitting the now dead cutlass militiaman.

The entire encounter only lasting in mere seconds.

This was the tenth patrol that Blake eliminated within the few hours after she met up with not-Pyrrha. As much as it disturbed her, the blood that she spilt all over calmed her down. She was sure that it was the intoxicating property of the blood in Yharnam. She didn't care at this point. All she needed was a distraction away from her questionable sanity.

She didn't want to talk to Eleanor about this.

Shaking her the thoughts away, she continued on her journey in Yharnam.

She only found two tomes in the few hours she was looking for that were relevant to her. They were already sent to Eleanor via the use of the small ghoulish messengers.

Her method of travel was restricted to climbing low houses or using the shadows as her cover. Singling out patrols instead of fighting a mob was better in her opinion. Her encounter with the eldritch being on top of one of the spires already gave her a disgusting taste in her mouth. She didn't like the feeling of death's embrace again.

' _Never again.'_

Climbing up the steps towards the aqueduct like bridge, she silently rushed towards one of the pillars as cover. Peering over to see what dangers awaits, she saw two beowolves milling about near a run down carriage. Their Grimm masks and plating were already developed, indicating that they were already mature. Just over the beowolves was a large ogre-like man that had bandages covering every inch of his body. He was playing with a pack of large dog-sized carrion crows with small Grimm masks.

' _Beowolves... Juvenile nevermores… I can take care of this.'_

Using the shadows of the statues that litter the bridge as cover, Blake rushed towards the two beowolves. The two parts of the Blade of Mercy slipped in the unarmored, exposed part of the Grimm armor just above the nape of the neck. The blades twisted around the neck, instantly decapitating the first beowolf. An Aura enhanced kick sent the headless corpse towards the other one, staggering it.

Three shadow clones leapt just above the surviving beowolf and attacked it with a few slashes and cuts of their own. As the clones dispersed Blake slid underneath the Grimm with the two daggers pointed upwards, effectively gutting it. It sent out a guttural scream as it let out its dying breath.

The scream was heard by the juvenile nevermores and the bandaged giant. They raced towards Blake as she coupled the two daggers into one blade.

Taking out her pistol, she took a shot at the closest nevermore. The mercury ball hurdled towards the crow-like monster, piercing its open mouth. The dying bird swerved towards the other one closest to it and both of them fell to the ground.

Holstering the pistol and sheathing the blade, she started running towards the downed carriage. She jumped on the roof of it and used it as a jumping platform. Using another clone to boost her towards behind the aggressors, both hands reached towards the throwing knives.

Six of the sharp projectiles hit their intended targets, killing the winged beasts easily.

The impact of her fall was mitigated as she performed a combat roll when she landed. Without missing a beat, both of her hands snaked towards her weapons; left going for Evelyn and right going to the Blade of Mercy.

As she readied herself for combat, her concentration was broken by a loud shriek that echoed throughout the district she was in.

Her golden eyes widened in what she witnessed.

The bandaged giant was pommelled into the ground by a massive furry hand. The creature that revealed itself was a massive one. Mangy, darkness filled fur covered the malnourished body it had. One of it's hands was as large as its body and was partially covered in natural bone armor. The claws were as large as a small person, and it would probably be able to shred a person easily without Aura. It had hideous horns on top of its head that accentuated its-

Blake blinked.

The Grimm mask was now replaced by a hideous face of a beast-like ape. It's darkness filled fur was now changed into the blood mottled fur that-

Visions of enlightenment and knowledge of the cosmos flooded her mind.

She blinked again.

The fleeting knowledge was immediately lost as quickly as it went. A massive stinging pain invaded her head. Clutching her head with her hands, her eyes strained to look back at the creature. It had the Grimm mask again and it was charging at her.

Blake evaded halfheartedly as she tried to shrug away the pain. The Grimm hit a massive pillar at the end of its charge attack. It was momentarily stunned by its horrible blunder. The Faunus took this opportunity to inject herself with a blood vial. The pain disappeared as the healing blood did its work to fix her body.

Feeling her body go up to a hundred percent, her gold orbs darted towards her opponent.

' _Fuck me…'_

The Grimm had recovered from its temporary stunned state and was now preparing to attack the onyx haired Huntress. She took her combat stance and readied herself for combat to begin.

The creature attacked first, swinging its massive clawed fist towards Blake. She left a shadow clone as she leaped upwards. The clone took the hit violently and promptly dispersed into wisps of nothingness. Sensing the shock of the monster, the Huntress made another shadow clone that propelled her downwards to deliver a punishing downward slash at the extended monster hand hand.

Blood spilled as the double helix blade slashed to make a deep wound. The monster shrieked in pain. Some of the blood came into contact with the now grounded Faunus, some of it entering her mouth. The thick liquid swirled inside her mouth for a few moments before she swallowed it unconsciously.

Her eyes widened to saucers as an ecstatic feeling overcame her. Something primal awoke inside of Blake. The blood was intoxicating. She wanted more of it.

A smaller clawed hand struck in counterattack at her side as her Aura took the brunt of the force. Sparing no free moment, Evelyn's barrel touched the skin of the beast's hand. Hot mercury shot out of the firearm as it invaded the thick hide.

Loading another mercury round inside the musket, she rushed towards one of the beast's leg. Pulling the trigger, hot mercury shot through the kneecap. Another shriek of rage echoed throughout the combat zone.

Taking this opportunity, Blake holstered the pistol and leapt towards the creature's face using Aura enhanced leg strength. Halfway through her flight she split the Blade of Mercy into its double curved dagger form. The two blades shot pierced the creature's chest as blood gushed out of the chest wound.

Blake cracked open a feral, toothy grin as the blood spilled forth towards her.

The giant beast retaliated with a punch that sent the Huntress hurdling away from the beast and hit the statues that littered the bridge. Aura protecting the body from rending itself from the force, but the pain and numerous bruises were still there. Slamming another vial in her thigh, the pain dispersed into nothingness. The body rapidly repairing itself from the blood healing it generously received.

' _I can fight like this!'_

Her body was back in perfect shape but she felt like her Aura was already down to less than half of its usual strength. It was already weakened through the constant abuse of using shadow clones, fighting patrols of militiamen, and the attacks she took from the beast that she was fighting currently.

Her hands shot backwards to her messenger bag and ignited two objects in haste. Two molotov cocktails flew out of her relatively small frame. Both flaming bottles hit the intended target and started burning away at its flesh. The fur only fueling the fire's raging inferno.

In response to the burning, the beast lifted both its hands skywards. A large slam of both beast fists shook the ground as she blocked it with the two curved daggers wreathed in her Aura. The reserves of the protective barrier were already protesting, but her body continued on.

Leaving behind a shadow clone to the fate of being crushed by the beast, she slid underneath the massive creature. Both curved daggers slashing away at the beast's legs as she travelled towards its back.

As the beast knelt down in pain, Blake took this opportunity to leap towards the beast's vulnerable back, using the daggers as makeshift climbing gear. As she ascended the daggers dug deeper in the hide with every stab. The creature took notice of this and started its wails of defiance as it tried to remove Blake from its back.

There was only one choice of attack now.

Climbing towards the head, she started stabbing wildly at and around the horned appendage. Steel met thick hide as the twin curved daggers serrating the thick flesh and fur as it carved deep gashes at the creature. Blood painted the stone floor beneath them continuously. The wails grew in intensity on as the large clawed hand grazed Blake continuously, taking away whatever small amount of Aura she had left. Her screams of rage matched the beast's own pained wails.

Her Aura's protective barrier shattered.

Pain didn't register in her mind as her attire and the flesh of her back were torn and wounded haphazardly by the clawed, uneven appendages. The blood she inadvertently swallowed continued to heal her growing wounds. Massive gashes around her body closing and reopening in sick, squelching sounds but she didn't bat an eyelash at the sickening process; the primal rage within her didn't allow any distractions as her body and blades continued its devastating onslaught.

The twin parts of the Blade of Mercy found its intended target: the crimson eyes of the beast that was hidden away by the bone mask. The beast's head shot forward like a bull's head mid charge, as Blake was momentarily dislodged. Creating another shadow clone, she used it as a platform mid flight to propel her to grasp at the hilts of the daggers.

A quick movement of her left hand positioned the holstered Evelyn just on forehead of the bone mask. She pulled the trigger. Hot mercury lanced from the barrel to the bone mask, shattering it. Seizing this chance, she roared as she twisted and turned the blades inside the skull, hoping to drill and pierce the grey matter within.

And pierce it did.

The creature's body turned limp. It fell backwards on the stone pavement. Taking the twin daggers and coupling them into one blade again, Blake gave a thorough look towards the downed beast.

It was dead.

An animalistic grin was plastered on her face as two words escaped her mouth in pained gasps.

"Prey _slaughtered_."

Adrenaline died down as it was replaced by visions of the cosmos again. The pain she felt from the visions was nothing compared to what she felt next.

The excruciating pain of her countless wounds flooded her mind and negated the pain of the visions.

The cosmos dispersed again as her body slumped downwards, face first. The pain was gone as well and all that was left was the numbness.

Darkness filled her vision.

' _Not again…'_

And soon, everything was as black as the abyss.

The Dream, once again, pulled her away from death's sweet embrace.

* * *

 **Author's Notes:**

 **And remember kids: don't snort Insight. It'll give you eyes on the inside. Now you don't want that, do you? Just stick to the Church regulated recreational blood. It's a lot safer and healthier. Now spiked with kin blood!**

 **I hope Blake here wasn't too OOC. With the limited information we have in canon, and me just starting out writing, I think I can get away with a few things. Hopefully... Probably... Most likely not.** _ ***sigh***_

 **Guess I'll just man up and take the brunt of complaints for OOCness.**

 **I actually didn't intend to have brooding Blake but I guess I ended with this.**

 **The chant was the prayer that the Doll does occasionally whenever you visit the Dream. From what I understand, there's a really small percentage of it triggering. I actually really like the prayer, and apparently, Flora is the Moon Presence's name. According to VaatiVidya and the translations he found in the Japanese version anyway.**

 **I did not realize that writing conversations can take sooooo loooong. It's like 4k words before the action actually starts. I'm just starting to get the flow of writing so bear with me as I improve. And I'm pretty sure I suck at writing fight scenes, and considering it now, since this** _ **is**_ **Bloodborne, I think I wrote myself in a corner. Goddamnit.**

 **See you in chapter three.**


	4. The Hunter

**I HAVE FINALLY FOUND OUT HOW TO USE THE HORIZONTAL LINE THINGY!**

 **Ahem... Sorry. Didn't really know how to use them earlier. I'll fix the other chapters later. Probably.**

 **Anyway...**

 **I forgot to mention it last chapter but the journal entries will be there mostly for exposition that I don't feel like it'll fit in the story somewhere. It's also an easy way to peer through what Blake is thinking. So more exposition I suppose.**

 **Don't worry, these won't really appear all that much in the story. Just assume that our resident cat girl ninja is constantly using the journal and writing on it..**

 **On with the show then.**

* * *

 **The Night Unfurls**

 **Chapter 3**

 **The Hunter**

* * *

 _Journal Entry Number 2_

 _I woke up with a massive headache. Again. I guess this is a recurring theme when you don't really die. Who knew immortality kinda sucks and feels weird?_

 _Well I woke up in the Dream half-naked. Probably messed up my outfit when I was fighting that Grimm-beast-thing. Good thing those messengers are pretty good craftsmen. Maybe I should ask for a better, armoured clothing? Now there's an idea. Wonder how could I get those guys to do that…_

 _Maybe I could convince them to make Gambol Shroud? I did make the original so making a replica from memory shouldn't be that hard. I mean, the metals are probably hard to find but this is a different dimension. The gun part could be changed a bit so that it wouldn't use Dust rounds. It_

 _could be changed to use mercury or blood. I don't think the mecha-shifting parts need any modifications since-_

 _Dust, I already sound like Ruby. I should probably stop thinking about weapons._

 _Anyway…_

 _It has been a day since I killed that massive Grimm-beast-thing. Eleanor called it a Cleric Beast since it was once a poor sod who had clerical duties at the Church. I don't know how or why that's possible. Why would the mutations be based on what their occupation was? It's not scientifically possible._

 _I asked Eleanor about this and all she could do was shrug._

 _I feel like she's hiding things from me..._

 _I could still faintly feel the cuts on my back I got from it even though they're not really there anymore. Like I said earlier, Immortality still feels weird. I probably won't get used to it._

 _And there is the matter of blood…_

 _I know that blood injections here are kinda like those potion things in Jaune's video games, but I didn't know ingesting them is could cause a world of difference. It tastes so good. I can't stop myself from just letting the blood splatter on my face in a fight._

 _I don't know what's happening to me…_

 _Is this what Eleanor said about the blood being intoxicating? Or how it'll cause blood-drunk hunting, whatever that is? She did give me some sedatives in case that happens… I should start bringing some of those when I'm out hunting. They'll probably clear my mind when I'm out in the field._

 _Am I going insane? Is it the mercury bullets I use? Certainly there should be a connection to it since I do mix my blood with those Dust damn things. I know mercury poisoning causes insanity, but surely it can't be just that. I suppose all of comes back to the blood._

 _It's always blood..._

 _I'll have to keep a calm and collected mind from now on if I want keep my sanity and go back to Remnant intact. I have to do this for team RWBY._

 _I need to go back to them._

 _End of Entry Number 2_

* * *

The afternoon sunlight cast its rays on the countless spires of Yharnam that reach out longingly to the infinite cosmos above. The shadows of the massive spires and buildings of the upper districts covering the much more humble ones and the poverty stricken slums, casting the illusion of an ever present night on those who lived below Yharnam's omnipresent shadows.

These everlasting shadows were the perfect place for unsightly beasts to breed and unsavory Hunters to conduct their business. Giant boarbatusk like pigs feeding on the rotting corpses that were thrown on the sewers haphazardly. Beast-like half decomposing corpses crawl on the muck and grime of green liquids and _feces_. Denizens of the sickening slums digging for whatever scraps of food and blood for sustenance. Such vile beings fed on the raw viscera of the blood that flows through the city's veins and its Pthumerian catacombs.

Having begrudgingly spent the early parts of her day in the sewers and slums exploring, the smells of the middle districts of the city were a welcomed feeling to Blake's sensitive sense of smell. She sorely wished that she wore a plague mask or any protective gear on her head for places like the sewers and the slums. The facemask of her attire partially giving protection to her, but it was still ineffective to her Faunus senses. She did not need the portable lantern or a light source of sorts, her night vision serviced her well in her trek to the sewers.

' _This is_ not _a good day.'_

The Huntress-in-training sighed and pinched her nose as the invading smell of the sewers still hasn't left her attire. The trek did not yield any good results, except for dead Hunter that had a few things that replenished Blake's own supplies and a Saw Spear for a Saw Spear was too heavy for her fighting style, but it could be used for something else.

It was not an odd sight to see dead corpses of fellow Hunters strewn and scattered throughout the city. Considering that the city was already overrun and the beast plague running rampant, seeing corpses of Hunter recruits and trainees was quite normal, all things considered.

She cleared her mind as she crouched low and her hand hovered just a foot of the cobblestone floor. Her concentration rewarded her with a small bubbling portal revealing a few ghoulish messengers greeting her. They were already emulating her attire, each one wearing a black or white bow on top of their head or tied on their neck like any other gentleman. She smiled lightly to them as they looked at her in awe and admiration.

"Here." Reaching out for the Saw Spear, she offered it to them as they took it with glee. "Give it to Eleanor. Maybe she'll find a use for it. Oh, before I forget," she patted one on the head as she paused. "Tell Eleanor to give me a few of those sedatives. I'll _need_ them." Punctuating her need of the medicinal liquids.

The ghoulish beings disappeared into the portal after the command. It bubbled for a while before closing the tear in reality. The mechanics of how the Dream asserts itself onto the real world was still confusing to the Huntress-in-training.

A few moments passed before another bubbling portal opened beside her. Four bottles of sedatives rolled out of it. She stuffed the precious bottles in her pack right after the portal dematerialized again.

Blake stood up from and dusted herself off. The facemask of her garb now covering half of her face. Tricorn hat hanging loosely on her back as she begrudgingly carried it around for protection against liquids falling on her. But most importantly, her teacher has forced her to wear it. The smell of the sewers still annoyingly cling to her garb.

' _Perhaps the scent of blood will cleanse it?'_

Shaking the ill thought out of her mind, she went on her way to explore more of the cursed, blood soaked city with journal and pen in hand and blade on the other.

* * *

Piecing the information off of the Moon Presence's riddles and looping conversations has been equally difficult to gleaming knowledge within the endless tomes that littered the Workshop's library. It was still much needed information about the cosmos and the beyond. Although, the Old Ones were hardly the paragon of truthfulness themselves, It was still worth noting that their knowledge held countless tomes worth of information about the cosmos, barring of course them being native to that realm.

Being _insightful_ of the world around and the godlike creatures above that pull the strings does have its numerous perks. And being a surrogate child of one of them does help immensely.

Seeing as this information could still be false, Eleanor took it upon herself to compare and contrast the creature's eldritch words and visions to whatever information could be found in the Workshop and Yharnam.

It was a thankless task but it was something she needed to do. Learning how to release those who are bound to the Dream was a necessity to her. Gehrman knew about the method of releasing the hold of the Dream, but sadly he did not give away the method to Eleanor, taking that information with him to the grave.

' _Taken to the grave…'_

Her blue eyes widened in realization.

' _It can't be that simple… Surely it can't be.'_

"Good Hunter..." It was the inquiry of the Doll and the porcelain hand that tapped lightly on Eleanor's shoulder that took her out of her thoughts. The concern within the Doll's voice was evident and Eleanor can only wince slightly at the Doll's interruption.

"Yes, Doll. What is it?" The Doll interrupting the crippled Hunter was quite the sight as it was odd. Normally, she had more tact and barely interrupted her Good Hunter whenever she spent her time musing things. Now it was a bit different.

"Do _you_ think it is right, keeping things from the Young Hunter? Doesn't she need to know all of this, the Moon Presence, the Old Ones, and the cosmos?" The Workshop's current owner winced again at the other inquiry. Lying was something she had used before but never the less despised. It served no other purpose but to burn down trust. And giving her insight on what the world truly is should benefit them in the long run.

' _No. No one needs to know.'_

"She doesn't need to know." Eleanor answered with only a few moments to spare for pondering. The knowledge of the cosmos and the Old Ones should be kept under wraps, locks and chains. Along with Byrgenwerth, the Pthemerian catacombs, and Yharnam itself needs to be burned down to the ground along with the knowledge and history those places. "No one needs to know about all this. Knowledge of this is dangerous. You know how all of this led to the deaths of thousands. This knowledge is too dangerous. I'm only doing this for her own good."

Heaving out a tired sigh, the Doll could only dejectedly accept the Good Hunter's reasoning. "As you wish, Good Hunter."

The Doll left the great halls of the library and Eleanor with her research and musings. Sighing, the blonde hobbled next to one of the library's massive windows that had a lounge couch next to it. Her body plopped itself onto the furniture, her eyes pointed out to the window..

The crippled Hunter could only stare blankly at the shattered moon up above. Her musings left her back to her mentor and the last request he made to her before she vehemently refused it and killed her mentor. A request to offer her life to end everything she has witnessed.

' _What if he meant that death inside the Dream was a way to waking up in the real world? Would it even be possible for Belladonna to go back to her own world?'_

Eleanor closed her eyes and lulled herself to comforting sleep.

* * *

Blake continued her trek in the middle districts of Yharnam. The occasional patrol of the crazed citizens only slightly hampering her progress. Stealthily sneaking around them or eliminating them in quick succession was how she usually dealt with it.

The larger beasts took more care, a molotov cocktail, a couple of well placed throwing knives, or a quick incision in a weak spot doing the job. Stealth and subterfuge are her best friends here after all. Usually she took them out with extreme prejudice. These things should be slain after all.

The last encounter she had was just a few minutes ago.

It wasn't a patrol, but a mob laying in wait for them to spring their trap on a narrow bridge. An obvious trap at that. The large boulder could be seen over a hundred meters and the vile smell of gasoline was noticeable in the air. It didn't matter to Blake as she let the flaming boulder trample over the mob and her twin curved daggers quickly dispatching the giant who was responsible for the boulder.

At this moment, she was just basking in the warm sunlight of the late afternoon. Taking in whatever rest she could in the Dust forsaken city. Lying on the cool stone floor and contemplating how her life has led to this. Surely she couldn't have predicted how she ended up in a different world, but everything was still too surreal to her. She often questioned her questionable sanity now. whenever she saw a beast her eyes would always associate them with Grimm, or how her mind would always play tricks on her. It was as if there was a layer within reality that her mind desperately tried to pry open but her senses refusing to do so.

It was all still too much to take in.

Her moment of respite was disturbed by two gangly plague ridden citizens that had mangy red fur all over them. Her heightened senses did not pick up the disturbance these two made, but was enough for her to mount the offensive.

Before they could react, a hot ball of mercury already flew from Evelyn and has already pierced the right eye of the first militiaman, killing him instantly. The rake and the torch he was holding fell uselessly on the ground.

The second one wasn't as lucky as his partner. The double helix blade, wreathed in the strength of Aura enhanced muscles, taking off one his legs in quick downward slash. This forced him to kneel in pain, the militiaman growling in frustration and extreme pain. The blade did it's quick work as it whizzed through the air and decapitated the man.

Newly spilled blood now caked the stone floor.

' _I hate this place…'_

Blake sighed as her quick rest was rudely interrupted.

Her exploration of Yharnam continues on.

Trudging along the path at the end of the bridge that was used for the crude trap, the Faunus went along it in her not-so-merry way. The shadows of the large spires and building engulfing the streets and alleyways of the district served well to hide both the Huntress-in-training and whatever danger decided to take the shadows as a shroud.

The ever present shade of Yharnam cast its gaze towards a large clearing holding a destroyed marketplace. The ruin that once held life for the citizens was a segue or a border of sorts that led towards a stone stairway that brought one to the massive chapel that served as the opening to the business districts and the Cathedral Wards.

Blake made her way towards the stone steps that went along towards a massive graveyard of sorts that sat at the foot of the chapel.

The sight to her was breathtaking. The sun looming above, but its rays only grazing the spires of the chapel and a few select areas that were high enough. The meager light gave the chapel a divine touch to it, a sanctuary -a bastion of hope- to what was just below. A mass graveyard with tombstones carelessly strewn all over the field. There were probably hundreds or thousands buried underneath the soil like sardines. What was their only companions however were the dead trees and a well dressed Hunter with a dark wide brimmed hat and a white scarf mottled with blood-

Wait, what?

The Hunter in question was chopping something, or someone, with a crude handaxe covered in blood soaked bandages. Blake recognized it as one of the basic Hunter weapons, a Hunter Axe. It was a trick weapon that had the ability to extend the handle, turning it from a one handed axe to a halberd with an axe head.

The man -Blake was sure it was a man due to his build- stood up to his full height. He was unnaturally tall. _'Almost twice as tall as Neo.'_ Blake mused. HIs back was still facing the Faunus. His black long coat and white scarf slightly swaying at the bellowing wind. He let out a short cough as if to clear his voice.

"...Beasts all over the shop... You'll be one of them, sooner or later..."

' _Neptune..?'_

Blake's breath hitched as she heard the voice. Before she could think however, the man turned towards her. His face came into full view of her. Light blue hair grown messily as it covered his tanned face. Two crazed deep blue eyes stared towards Blake, as if appraising her soul -or most likely, her blood. There was beyond a shadow of a doubt it was him, aside from the his aged face.

She wasn't sure if this the result of her questionable sanity or some eldritch deity playing tricks on her fragile mind, but there was one thing she was sure of: she needed to _run_ \- run away from the crazed Hunter.

Turning her heel to prepare for flight, her golden eyes came into contact with dark grey ones. The owner, who was wearing a dull yellow and brown Hunter attire covered with countless bandoliers; his face covered with brown facemask and a feathered yellow tricorn hat. He was blocking the path towards the marketplace with a spear and a blunderbuss.

The spear the man was holding was easily recognizable as a Rifle Spear, created by the Workshop heretics, the Powderkeg Hunters.

Before Blake could form any thought of an alternate escape, the man shot forward with the spear. Instincts kicked in and a shadow clone was left to take the hit from the spear. A clicking sound came out of the weapon as a dozen pellets of mercury shot out and pelted the onyx haired Faunus. Luckily, her Aura protected her from becoming a cushion for shotgun pellets.

"Sick creature... May _you_ rest in peace..." The Hunter in yellow and brown croaked out in a ragged, yet familiar voice. Memories of a blond, crass monkey Faunus crossed her mind as whirled in action a million miles a minute.

' _Sun?!'_

This took Blake off guard again. A great pain in her head emerged once more as more vivid visions of the cosmos invaded her mind, just like her fight with the Cleric Beast. The pain was still greatly unbearable but a quick jab from a blood vial took it away.

Her hidden cat ears twitched as her senses concentrated on the sound of the Hunter Axe slashing horizontally towards her torso. Her body spun as her hand shot out with her Aura concentrated at the palm of her hand to block it. The blade of the axe was stopped short before it could damage her outstretched hand.

This took not-Sun and not-Neptune both by surprise. Taking this chance, Blake backpedaled to make some distance between her and her opponents. She can't sneak past them now. Combat was her only option.

Blake steeled herself as she muttered a quick apology to the doppelgangers that looked like her friends. "Forgive me."

Three throwing knives shot out of her hand aimed towards not-Sun. The blunderbuss he held cracked as pellets shot out and met the flying knives and stopped them mid flight, falling uselessly on the ground.

Serving their purpose as distraction well, the onyx haired Faunus sidestepped as her Blade of Mercy shot out to meet not-Sun's torso. Not-Neptune's Hunter Axe extended its full length as it met the double helix blade, blocking the strike. His own blunderbuss pelted her Aura as she was reeled back by the force of the impact.

Not-Sun's thrusted his Rifle Spear towards Blake's torso, the brunt of the attack was absorbed by the shadow clone she left behind. It dissipated into thin air. The visage of the dying shadow clone was replaced by the Huntress-in-training pointing Evelyn towards the yellow and brown garbed Hunter's head. He reacted quickly by covering his face with his off hand. Hot mercury pierced it and invaded his hand.

Clicking her tongue in annoyance, she sidestepped to her right giving her enough room and time to load another mercury round inside Evelyn. It was now not-Neptune who took the opening as an advantage.

His axe now in its shortened form, it made quick slashes towards Blake. She weaved and ducked through most of the attacks. She used her shadow clones to take the rest of the attacks she couldn't dodge. Almost after every shadow clone that fell, she retaliated with small cuts she delivered towards the nicely dressed insane Hunter. The growls of frustration coming from him were getting louder and _louder_.

At the edge of her vision, she could see not-Sun injecting himself with a couple of blood vials, healing his mercury ridden hand as fast as the blood could act.

' _Damn.'_

The momentary distraction had given enough time for not-Neptune for an attack. His blunderbuss cracked as the pellets shot out and hit Blake's off hand, along with Evelyn. Her dwindling Aura reserves protected her hand, but not the firearm. This promptly disarmed her as her long barrel pistol flew out of her reach. She cursed herself for being distracted.

The Hunter Axe extended to its full length mid swing, hitting her weakened Aura that shielded her torso and throwing her away from the blood drunk Hunter.

Seeing as she was now unarmed, her hand went to her messenger bag and quickly grabbed a molotov cocktail. She primed it within mere moments and hid it behind her her with her off hand.

Not-Neptune didn't seem to have noticed this act or was simply too insane to care, so he rushed ahead and continued on his onslaught against the Faunus.

' _That's it!'_

This was the opportunity Blake needed. Weaving through another series of attacks, her off hand that carried the primed crude incendiary grenade shot towards the crazed Hunter and slammed the cocktail on his chest. The liquid quickly covering the man's torso and the fire spread towards his entire frame.

Blake was lucky enough that her weakening Aura protected her from the spreading flames. Jamming another blood vial, her body now went back to its perfect state, without a replenished Aura reserve of course. She split the Blade of Mercy into its twin dagger forms and rushed the yellow and brown garbed Hunter

The pained wails of the burning not-Neptune broke not-Sun's concentration and healing.

As Blake leapt to deliver the killing blow to the spear wielder, he raised his blunderbuss in defiance and shot her. The mercury pellets connected with her shadow clone she purposely left as a distraction. The real Blake used the cover of the gravestones and attacked not-Sun's right side. He anticipated this however and shot her with the Rifle Spear's blunderbuss. Hitting her Aura protected leg with the pellets.

She stumbled forward and fell face first onto the dirt.

"D-damn…"

Without missing a beat, the man's Rifle Spear and blunderbuss shot their hot mercury pellets on the Huntress-in-training's exposed back. This weakened her Aura to what felt like its last legs.

Sensing the danger of her weakened Aura, Blake rolled away as the Rifle Spear stabbed at where she was moments ago.

' _Dust damnit! That almost had me!'_

Seeing as she was now facing the late afternoon sky, she propelled herself upward in a standing position using her legs. Hearing another click of the blunderbuss she spun forward and created a shadow clone in front of her to use as a human shield. She kicked the clone towards not-Sun to meet the spear and blunderbuss.

The Rifle Spear pierced the clone's chest and went through its back, skewering it. Not a moment too late, the spear's blunderbuss crackled as mercury pellets shot out, barely grazing Blake.

' _There! An opening!'_

A shadow clone went on the offensive on not-Sun's left side. His blunderbuss made quick work of the clone, but it was an adequate enough distraction for Blake as she shot forward on the right side of the yellow and brown garbed Hunter. Twin curved daggers glistening with murder.

The two blades met the flesh of the Hunter's torso with glee. He stumbled backwards and fell to the ground on his back. His weapons clattered uselessly near them. Blake pinned him down with her own weight as he resisted with pushes, shoves, and punches.

"Gaaahhh!" Blake let out a feral growl as she continued her assault.

Stabbing wildly at him, the twin curved daggers drew blood after each and every wound that they dealt. It continued on until the body went limp and the only sound not-Sun delivered were gurgling as blood seeped out of his mouth onto his facemask.

With shaky hands, she gripped the daggers loosely.

' _I-I killed h-'_

Before she could react fully however, the curved blade of the Hunter Axe slammed full force on her side as she was launched away from the body. Her body hit the wall of the chapel with enough force to match an Atlesian Paladin's fist. Her Aura's protection waned and not a moment later, dissipated.

Her Aura's barrier has shattered.

Groaning in pain, she forced her golden eyes to open and witness her attacker. It was still not-Neptune with an extended Hunter Axe in his hands. What was odd however was how his limbs looked oddly elongated in unnatural ways. His back was hunched over, giving a slight slouch. Small growls escaped his clenched teeth as he still had a few of the embers from the cocktail's flames shining and burning his growing fur-

' _Wait, what, fur?'_

As if on cue, he threw both the blunderbuss and axe away from him and his muscles started bulging out of his burnt attire. His clothes ripped and were torn as his form took a more beastly appearance by the second. Leg bones snapping in place to mimic the hind legs of a hound. The burnt clothing finally gave way and ripped apart as the man she facing was no more than a beast, completing the metamorphosis.

The lumbering form of the man-turned-turned beast cast its primal gaze onto her, hungry and aching for vengeance.

"N-no…" Blood seeped out of her mouth as she gasped. Her eyes widened in panic as she desperately tried to grab onto one of her blood vials. Unfortunately, her hands were rendered useless as they can barely move, only giving a slight twitch from her fingers. Death's grasped was already upon her once again. She wasn't ready to meet with the mistress of death again.

Before she could meet death's embrace again however, her golden eyes caught a glimpse of feathers slowly descending towards the ground.

The feathers were red, red like roses.

A loud thump reverberated just beside her as a new person entered the fray. A cloak made up of red feathers covered their person lightly swayed to the wind. An occasional feather or two would slowly detach themselves from the cloak and fly aimlessly in the field.

The person sauntered in front of Blake, using themselves as a barrier against the beast and the Faunus. Glancing on their shoulder, their "face" came into view. They were wearing a plague doctor's mask in the shape of a nevermore's boney facemask and beak. This was accentuated with the pointed hat and the feathered cloak, giving off a crow or vulture like appearance.

On their back was a massive rifle slung on their shoulder. It was an odd rifle since it's overall design aesthetic would convey the look of a modern Dust powered anti-material rifle but it didn't have any scope to speak of whatsoever. On their main hand was curved longsword that looked more of a giant sharpened claw than tempered steel. On their off hand was some sort of collapsible staff.

"I'm here to help." Came out of the plague doctor's mask. The voice was distinctly female and aged but was muddled by a thick accent that Blake couldn't put a name to.

Before the Faunus could react or give thanks however, the beast charged at the cloaked woman. Newly formed claws eager to drink blood.

The woman stood her ground and attached the blade to the collapsed staff. With a flick of her wrist, the amalgamation of steel and reinforced wood transformed into a massive scythe the size of the woman.

Before the beast could connect any attack, the woman initiated her dance of death with the scythe, easily wounding or taking chunks of flesh away from the beast. The helpless beast was already trapped within the dance's momentum. It was a cruel and brutal yet efficient method of fighting: cutting deep enough to cause massive bleeding but shallow enough not to decapitate, thus conserving more energy for the one who was fighting.

With enough blood lost, the beast slumped over dead. It was nothing more than a bleeding carcass now.

The fight ended as quickly as it started with only one clear winner: the woman with the scythe.

' _Damn, that's impressive…'_

Blake slowly shook her revery away as she had more pressing matters now; trying not to die again. This act seemed to have caused the scythe-wielder away from her thoughts as well.

Seeing as Blake was wounded and barely alive, the scythe-wielder walked towards the Faunus and crouched down beside her. She patted the onyx haired girl before finding what she needed: blood vials.

"W-what-," Before the Huntress-in-training could protest, four blood vials were callously injected into her. The healing liquid did its work and fixed the broken bones, twisted arms, and deep wounds, albeit slowly. Blake mused that this was probably because her body was thoroughly weakened.

"Like I said," The scythe-wielder bagan, "I'm here to help."

"Who are you?" Blake croaked out in a hoarse voice.

"People call me Crow or _the_ Crow." The woman giggled slightly at the emphasis. "But you can call me Eileen."

* * *

 **Author's Notes:**

 **Eileen enters the stage.**

 **Volume 3, Chapter 10 was hype as hell. New Grimm types (ermahgurd griffins and a wyvern Grimm mama that spawns little baby Grimm babies), friendship, and team fights. Needs more Monochrome tho.**

 **Anyway…**

 **The worst boss fights are where there's two or more of them. Like Lud and Zallan in the Ivory King DLC from Dark Souls 2. Man, that was impossible.**

 **Thinking about it now, I think using Gehrman would have been fine in this story. Can't really back down now, as much as I really want to.** _ ***Sighing heavily***_

 **Seeing that Gehrman does know how to let someone bound to the Dream be released from its grasp, I think he would have still been fine.** _ **Uuuggghhh…**_

 **Too bad I can't really back down now like a massive coward.**

 **Segue into...**

 **As we've seen with a few characters and the story, I've taken quite a few liberties just to make a few things make sense. Or for the story to make sense. For example, the "Insight messed with Blake's head so now she sees things that are familiar to her even though they're not suppose to" stuff.**

 **I'm heavily leaning towards the use of the whole "time and space being wibbly-wobbly, timey-wimey, ball of stuff" that Dark Souls has. But I'm not really sure how that'll work out later. Or if I should just use like a timeline reset thing but the only thing that isn't affected by it is the Dream and everything within it.**

 **That paragraph above is just stuff that I'm considering. So they're totally not definitive. And besides, Blake is running through a modified NG+ so there should be a few changes. And the marketplace before the boss fight was more or less me just giving more size and unlife to Yharnam.**

 **Still iffy about fight scenes.**

 **See you in the next chapter.**


	5. Moonlit Melody

**Well, Volume 3 Chapter 11 happened…**

 **All I could really say was after that was "NO, YANG! NO!". It was going SO well too! Ruby being cool, then Velvet became the main character for a bit, but more importantly, Weiss finally gets a Stand!**

 **That should be something, eh?** _ **Weiss-cream's Bizarre Adventure.**_ **It'll be a globe trotting adventure to destroy the dastardly Cinder FALL. An ancient evil that has one desire, and that is to destroy the Schnee family!**

 **Together with Team RWBY, Weiss-cream's sister, and Zwei, they'll put end to the evil machinations of FALL.**

 **I really should stop my tirade of JoJo's Bizarre Adventure…**

 **Anyway...**

 **Some of you may have already noticed, but I'll say it just in case. I try to update every week, preferably Friday.**

 **On with the show then.**

* * *

 **The Night Unfurls**

 **Chapter 4**

 **Moonlit Melody**

* * *

Eileen not was having a good day.

Those 'good' days seem to be fleeting to her now as her age seem to be catching up to her. Sure, she may have saved two siblings -mere children really- earlier today from an untimely doom from a Maneater Boar. Or destroyed a blood-drunk Hunter that was causing harm to whatever was left of the sane citizens of Yharnam. The act of saving innocents still does give her warm feelings inside her aging heart and soul.

What made her not like her day of heroics was the onyx haired _child_ in front of her.

The girl was alive and well thanks to the veteran Hunter of Hunters' own intervention. But the way the child seemed act truly did disturb Eileen. The girl's mere presence already screamed 'Gehrmen'. _'That senile old man does not have the right to send children to fight beast and abominations. Children like her shouldn't even have to kill'_. It was that single thought that sent anger boiling within her. Children should not be forced to fight beasts. _No one_ should be forced into it. It was a thankless job that left men into husks of what they used to be. It was a miracle in and of itself that Eileen was still sane after all this time hunting down the very men who were only driven by the calling of blood.

The way the child's golden eyes flickered was more than enough to prove that innocence was already lost, or if it was still there, barely existed.

All she could really do was try to tend to the beaten and battered onyx haired girl. The blood already did most of the physical pain, but the mental ones surely still lingered.

"Are you alright?" It was that question that shook the girl away from her thoughts. The tricorn hat the girl was wearing lifted up with her head as the girl's golden eyes looked at the veteran Hunter -meeting the plague doctor's mask- as if scanning her. _'Gold. quite the contrast to my gunmetal…'_ Eileen produced the girl's firearm and twin daggers -now in it's short sword double helix form- to return them to their rightful owner. The presence of the Blade of Mercy and Evelyn was further proof that the onyx haired girl was a pawn of the Dream.

The girl took the weapons quickly, as if they were a missing piece of her. "Y-yes, I am. Thank you." The weary smile of the child still held some semblance of innocence that warmed Eileen's aging and frosted heart.

The tension within the veteran Hunter's old bones ceased as her demeanor relaxed to accommodate the relieve the girl's own stressed form. "Tell me child, what is your name?"

The child seemed hesitant at first, but complied to the request. "Blake. Blake Belladonna."

' _Nightshade? An odd name but also very fitting.'_

"Well then, Blake. If you would follow me, I can lead you to a safe haven where you can rest and wait the night out." Eileen knew that Blake could just go back to the Dream for respite, but common courtesy still deemed it necessary to act cordially. The fact that she could keep the onyx haired child away from Gehrman was just an added boon to it.

"Blake. How is Gehrman doing? Is he well?" There was no concern in Eileen's voice as this inquiry was only used to usher in conversation with the young Blake. The crippled man did do quite a number in the Hunter population of Yharnam. The thought that Eileen used to be a pawn of his sent another pang of anger within her that she quickly squashed for the younger girl's sake.

"Gehrman?" The onyx haired girl's face scrunched up in confusion until the name finally registered in her memories. "Oh, him. He's dead, or so I've been told."

This was confusing. The Dream was essentially forcing immortality upon Gehrman. His death should have been prevented by whatever deity created the Dream. If he was dead, then there was a completely good reason for it. _'This is quite the conundrum…'_

"Told by who?" Eileen needed to know. _'If that old man was dead then someone must have taken his place as the Dream's prisoner.'_

They passed by a dead corpse of a woman. Her body was already mangled to an unrecognizable mess. The veteran Hunter could only sigh in disappointment as the plague did bring the monsters within people. Quite literally, considering where most beasts come from.

"Eleanor de la Albertine." Blake replied with hesitation. Eileen knew the name. It was the foolhardy descendant of the Cainhurst line. A bastard, true, but still held the precious and rare blood of the nobles in that frozen wasteland. A heretic, but the veteran Hunter did not care as Eileen did not worship the Church's teachings herself. "Eleanor is the… Workshop's current owner."

"I see…" _'It seems that the Cainhurst prodigy finally managed to grow a backbone and get a bit of ambition to boot.'_ With Eleanor at the helm of the Workshop, and her hatred with the 'powers that be', the hunt was already shaping up to be more chaotic than the past ones the veteran Hunter of Hunters has thrown herself into.

The thought of having the senile Gehrman out of the picture and machinations did give Eileen some comfort for a few moments before taking the a more professional facade for the young Hunter beside her.

She heaved a long and heavy sigh as she led Blake to the gated off area that led to Oedon Chapel.

* * *

"Whoa..." Blake let out a small gasp of surprise as she took in the intricacy of the design and the aesthetic of the chapel before her. It was both a magnificent and quite a disturbing sight to behold.

Eileen informed Blake that it was the Oedon Chapel, dedicated to serving Formless Oeden. A deity of sorts that the Yharnamites have worshiped for a long time.

' _To think that there's a religion like this…'_

The stone statues and painted murals that surrounded the chapel was astounding and odd. They all depicted strange spider-like creatures and deities made of strange skeletal creatures made of tentacles. They were all depicted as gracing the Yharnamites with their knowledge and insight of the cosmos. Most importantly though was the heavy emphasis on how these deities gifted the world with their miraculous blood.

The divine blood was given upon humanity to ascend to a higher existence. A promised land to whoever grasped the secrets of the deities' blood.

' _There's always some semblance of truth in myths… Could any of this be real? If so, then that's a scary thought...'_

Eileen took the place beside the Faunus. "We are made human by the blood, we surpass humanity by the blood, we lose our humanity again by the blood." She recited the small prayer without any hint of praise as Blake scanned the chapel, taking in the sights with her golden eyes. The prospect of an entire populace worshiping tentacle monsters was already unsettling. The cult-like devotion was just another icing on the cake.

' _Well that's another wave of creepy.'_ Blake thought to herself as they neared the door that was their supposed access inside the chapel.

Her cat ears twitched underneath the bow _and_ the tricorn hat as there was a distinct sound of heavy boots hitting the floor with forceful steps that stopped both Hunters in their steps. Blake tensed as she could feel the tension in the air. Another round of life and death combat wasn't an option to her due to her depleted Aura supplies. Unless she wished to death's grasp again...

"I believe it is 'We are born by the blood, made men by the blood, undone by the blood', Crow." The person who invaded the chapel spoke up in an unusually cheery tone of voice. The voice itself was distinctly female and familiar to Blake but was muddled through a thick accent that was not so dissimilar to Eileen.

The veteran sighed and clicked her tongue as she could only acknowledge the newcomer. She turned her heel and faced the person. "Valtr, what are you doing here?"

There was a hint of slight hostility with the remark Eileen gave. Blake turned to see who this 'Valtr' was. What she saw was more proof that her sanity was already waning or if this world was a parallel to Remnant..

It was team JNPR's resident psychopath, Nora Valkyrie.

"Nora?" Blake practically whispered as she wasn't sure what they would think of her.

It was Nora, but it also wasn't Nora. Determined emerald eyes greeted her as she drank the full view of the Hunter who resembled her friend. Her freckled face was all too similar but was slightly aged with the look of a veteran of war. Her bright orange hair was long enough to reach the Hunter's shoulder but short enough to be manageable for anyone who spent their time in active combat. Her entire attire was akin to an old military general's uniform with a small cape that she wore with golden chains to secure it in place. There was an odd bucket-like helmet clipped on her belt, as if to signify that she was still the Nora Blake knew.

The entire ensemble was finished off with a massive naval cannon with intricate engravings attached to her left arm while her right was holding -which to Blake was further proof that this was the Nora of this world- a massive hammer with the shape of a revolver's hammer on the opposite side of the business end while said business end had a massive plate that was obviously used as the bashing part.

The thing that caught Blake's attention however was the way the entire hammer was designed. It was obvious that the weapon had a trigger to activate an alternate mode -and with the revolver's hammer and the burn marks- it was quite obvious that the weapon itself had some sort of incendiary mode.

"So, Crow." Valtr began as an attempt to start conversation. "Who's the little pipsqueak? She doesn't look much really, besides the obviously impressive hunting equipment." The hammer wielding woman's inquiry shook the Faunus away from her thoughts. She gestured towards Blake's weapons. "I know that those swords are exclusive to Hunter of Hunters."

Emerald eyes were now upon Blake as they drank every detail of the onyx haired girl. Those eyes were assessing her worth, that much was obvious.

Eileen was the one who provided the hammer wielder the information. "Remember Albertine, the Cainhurst descendant? She took over Gehrman's Workshop, and this child here is its first recruit."

"That explains the firearm. It seems Ellie finally killed the old man, huh?" Valtr contemplated the ramifications of the Cainhurst descendant taking control of the Workshop. After the few moments of contemplation, the orange haired woman could only shrug. "About time it happened."

There was a small cruel giggle that escaped Eileen's hidden face inside the plague doctor's mask. The evil laugh was a bit unnerving to Blake. "I couldn't be happier myself. That old fool already sent a lot of our kind to their deaths. Hopefully Eleanor does a better job."

There was a few moments of gears grinding within Blake's mind as she came to a conclusion that just occurred to her. "Wait, I never really asked any of you how _you both_ know these things. I thought everything about the Dream and Gehrman was a secret."

There was a slight pause as both veteran Hunters contemplated what they should say to the Faunus. Eileen was the first one to break the silence.

"Eleanor told us during her time here in the… What was it she called this place?" Eileen looked towards Valtr as if she was waiting for an answer. The woman in question could only shrug. It seems she didn't need an answer as the words she was looking for entered her thoughts. "Ah, yes. 'The waking world'."

"The waking world?" Blake parroted. It was an odd name to call the real world, but it did hold some semblance of sense. Slumber and death does drag her to the pocket dimension her mentor calls home. The mechanics of the Dream still bothered her.

It was Valtr who replied to her query. "It is quite the odd moniker, no? It's what she called this place. I say it's fitting since she _is_ bound to the Dream."

How they knew of the Dream was another mystery to her, but she didn't pursue the line of thought lest they suspect Blake of knowing more than she lets on.

' _I'll just add that to my secrets, along with my Faunus heritage.'_

Blake fidgeted with her tricorn hat, silently thanking it for the added benefit of hiding her furry appendages on top of her head, even if it was already hidden inside her black bow.

' _I guess Eleanor wasn't talking out of her ass about this one.'_

Eileen tapped her shoulder to gain her attention. "Come now, little Hunter. It's time for you to meet the survivors we've managed to gather." The veteran Hunter pointed at the massive door that greeted them.

"Survivors?" Blake repeated. Her face scrunched up in an expression of confusion. "I thought Yharnam was an abandoned city with all the beasts quarantined within it."

It was quite the fair assumption, she thought. There were barely any other actual people she saw, and those she did see tried to kill her. Valtr and Eileen were the only ones who seemed to retain their sanity, or if they just kept quiet about their waning sanity. Blake herself already has questionable and dwindling sanity, or she keeps telling herself that.

"Yes and no." Eileen replied with haste. "We do not exactly know if the plague has infected the far corners of the world, but all we do know that it started here. Within the city's deep caverns actually. Cainhurst itself is already as infected with the plague as thick as Yharnam. It's quite impressive how it adapted to the harsh temperatures of that frozen wasteland."

This was new information to Blake. Eleanor did not tell her this either to keep her away from the catacombs or if she just forgot. Eleanor did seem to be the person to forget a lot of things. It reminded the Faunus of her friend, Jaune.

"How?" Blake inquired to her superiors.

"Hmm… So it seems you're an outsider then? No matter." Blake flinched at Eileen's assessment. It was already unsettling that the veteran Hunter that she got enough information about Blake to form a conclusion. Good thing Eileen easily waved it off or she didn't care. "Yharnam was built on top of a long dead civilization. A dead civilization, based on what we've uncovered, has quite the understanding of the blood that we so graciously covet. There are deep catacombs within Yharnam that house centuries worth of research and culture. These 'Pthumerians' were the first practitioners of blood ministration after all. We also named the city after one of their most prominent figures: Queen Yharnam."

This was quite a lot to take in for Blake. The information, even if it was common knowledge, it was important nonetheless for future hunts and expeditions within the city of Yharnam.

Valtr coughed as loud as possible to get the attention of Blake and Eileen. "As much as I hate to interrupt your history lesson, I think it'd be rude to ignore the people around us."

The hammer wielder gestured to the growing crowd of people that was staring at them. People who looked familiar to Blake either being people she saw from Beacon or just random passerbies and employees of places she frequented at Vale.

There was a woman who dressed in nun's garb who looked eerily like the Haven student, Cinder Fall. A woman wearing a red finery with the poise and appearance of Weiss' older sister, Winter Schnee, was looking onto them with mild interest. Professor Port was also there dressed in stereotypical old man outfit. There was even a two children running around the chapel. One of them was wearing a white dress while the other was wearing a red one. Most others were just faces to her but was also familiar.

All of them were slowly approaching the Hunters with caution. They were weary of Blake as she was sure that it was because she was an unknown variable to these people's lives and safety. She couldn't blame them, of course. They were all just scared of what monstrous beasts lurked outside the very walls they called sanctuary. The onyx haired Faunus did witness the dangers of the beasts and the blood crazed Hunters that lurked the streets of Yharnam.

"I do apologize everyone." Eileen quelled the growing crowd with her soft spoken voice and her softening posture. "This here is another Hunter I found out there in the city."

Various reactions were elicited from the crowd. Most of them looked at her with disgust like the old man who looked like professor Peter Port, while others, like the nun and the Winter look-alike -who was tending to the children- held a soft expression of relief.

A man wearing red robes akin to that of a monk approached the veteran Hunter. He had the face of team JNPR's resident martial artist, Lie Ren. "Ah, miss Eileen. Your presence here means that you've taken care of the beast problem just outside our doors?"

' _The voice even sounds like Ren as well.'_

"It was Blake here who did that. I just finished off what she started." Eileen gestured towards the Faunus beside her.

Blake mustered her best Pyrrha smile and posture; even mimicking the awkward greeting. "Hello." She even gave the small wave and the disarming smile.

"Pleasure to meet you, Blake. Just call me Samaritan, for that is what I am." Ren -the Samaritan said as he let out a small bow. His posture and stance gave the impression of a calm and controlled man.

"No problem. Glad to be of service." _'Eileen was the one who did most of the work though.'_ The words merely stayed at the forefront of her mind to keep the humble image of Eileen.

* * *

There was a pregnant silence as everyone went about their day. The survivors took their place in the chapel, idly chatting or just avoiding the Hunters. The children Eileen has saved earlier in the day now found the comfort of the prostitute with long flowing white hair, Arianna. The nun with wavy black hair, Adella was looking at them with contempt. The veteran Hunter could only sigh at the petty display.

The young Hunter, Blake, took the place beside her. There was an awkward silence between them, neither seeming to have the courage nor social skill to break the ice. Blake did however cough lightly as a gesture to gain Eileen's attention. The tricorn hat the girl was wearing obscured the expressions of her face, but her posture said it all. She was nervous and uneasy.

Her stance went rigid as she found her courage.

"Eileen?" Blake spoke softly as an attempt to avoid attention.

"Yes Blake?"

There was a brief silence as the young Hunter pondered on what she was going to say. She steeled herself as she spoke in a hushed tone. "Thank you. For saving me."

Eileen gave a small nod to the onyx haired girl. Even if death was cheap to the child, it was still in her nature to save people in need. "It's no problem. If I was too late, you would merely be back in the Dream."

"N-no, no… I mean…" Blake looked at the veteran Hunter and gave the most disarming smile she could, but her eyes already spoke volumes. Her golden eyes were sorrowful and hid in the facade of determination. "Whenever I die, I feel like I'm slowly losing myself. Like a piece of myself is lost whenever that happens. I-I don't really know why it's happening, I just know that my deaths are taking a toll on me, even though I've only died a couple of times."

Eileen titled her head slowly in contemplation. "Hmm… I've never thought of that. But it matters not. All I did was the right thing."

Underneath the intimidating plague doctor's mask was a small smile curling up within. She was sure that Blake knew the gesture, if her voice was anything to go by.

"I still appreciate it." The golden eyes of the young Hunter met the red ones of Eileen's mask. Blake flashed the sincerest smile she could to the older woman. It was times like these where Eileen's motherly instincts usually kicked in, but she stomped it out with conviction. Only leaving behind the facade of a mentor. "I'll find a quiet place to rest up and then I'll be on my way. I won't overstay my welcome here."

Her head nodded slowly. "Very well then. Best of luck to your hunts then."

Blake thanked her and went on her way to a secluded area where she started scribbling down notes on her small journal, occasionally summoning the white ghoulish messengers that Eileen grew accustomed to with Eleanor's presence in the previous hunt.

' _She reminds me so much of my youngest…'_ A small sigh escaped Eileen as she slumped down on the nearest wall. Her massive rifle clattering uselessly on her side while her scythe collapsed into a much more compact form beside her. _'Damn… It's been more than a decade since I last thought of them… What would they think of me now?'_

And so she let her mind wander memories of a life she had, of a life she led once upon a time. A life where she had no hope of coming back to.

* * *

 **Author's Notes:**

 **Valtr enters the stage. Note that this Valtr is female and isn't using the Whirligig Saw but has a Boom Hammer instead. Weeeell, this is Nora we're talking about sooo…. No excuses I guess?**

 **Well… Anyway….**

 **My grasp on writing conversations is still very lacking so I'm trying to get used to writing them. If you were wondering why this fic's conversations were quite shite, then there's your reason.**

 **And the resins thing was more or less an ass pull from me trying to justify the papers in Bloodborne a bit. I mean, course paper. Why? Why not just say they use resins? So yes, tis but an ass pull. A massive ass pull on my part.**

 **See you on the next chapter.**


	6. Watchers

**Here's a bonus to ya'll readers, the title of the twoshot (It got too long for just one chapter, like seriously, who would want to read something that'll end up around 20k words in one go?) I'm working on has a WIP title called "Life of a Mage Turned Huntress". Speculate on what it is. Although I'm confident that a few people already guessed it.**

 **On with the show I guess.**

* * *

 **The Night Unfurls**

 **Chapter 5**

 **Watchers**

* * *

"That's it, I give up. I'm lost."

Blake sighed as she made her way at the same stone street she passed numerous times already. She prided herself with her navigational skills -she was a skilled infiltrator after all and excellent navigation was a have must within the profession. A ninja needed perfect knowledge of their environment, right?

' _Then why can't I find my way in this stupid district!?'_

The Cathedral District of Yharnam was a winding maze that confused her greatly. To her, it felt like a non-Euclidean location that played tricks to her, but she knew that the drab color of the city muddled her ability remember locations properly. The district had hundreds of gravestones and caskets littered throughout it, perhaps it was just getting same-y for her? Sure, the beasts littered the streets could be used for location markers and their corpses could be used the same way was well. Yharnam to her just felt like it was easy to get lost into, and not in the good way where the occasional tourists who felt adventurous did. It was more of the lack of diverse colors that bothered her.

The district's confusing, winding streets annoyed her a great deal. Her golden eyes were already weary at looking at the same browns, blacks, and greys of the city.

Even using the spires as vantage points were out of the question!

' _Those things'll kill me if I try climbing up the buildings again…'_

Blake heaved another heavy sigh as as she tried a different route. Maybe the stone road that led to the lower districts were an option?

She didn't -couldn't care anymore. The sheer annoyance of getting lost over and over again was already muddling her logical mind's thought process.

The Faunus slowly trudged through the stony streets, avoiding the occasional patrol and skirting through beasts with her excellent skill with large, mutated men that stood meters above her were the easiest to sneak past. They were dumb as bricks and only cared if anything came within their range of vision, which wasn't very much.

All she needed to do was make an appropriate distraction with a shadow clone or a well placed pebble. It usually served well. And if she was spotted, a quick execution or an assassination usually did the job.

Her heavy armoured boots clanked and clicked as she trudged through a street that led deeper to the lower districts of Yharnam. The sun was already sinking on the horizon as the evening sky was mottled with deep shades of purple and crimson. The silhouette of the shattered moon slowly appearing in the pastels of the darkening sky. The celestial beings were the only constants in the cosmos that acknowledged the frugality of light and dark.

' _It's getting darker. Sneaking would probably be easier. Too bad Eileen and Valtr can't really help me.'_

The two veteran Hunters already gave up on Yharnam. Their only real motivation to stay within the godforsaken city was to save as much innocents as they can and usher in an exodus to a safe haven away from the curse of the beasts and blood ridden plague. "It was their duty as the only sane Hunters left", they assured her.

' _I can't really bring myself to blame them. They're doing what they can to save people.'_

The street that Blake aimlessly followed led to some a small chapel of sorts. The shambled walls were already giving way and it was only a matter of time before it crumbled to dust.

There was a loud crack as a rifle discharged its ammunition towards the young Huntress. The projectile bounced off Blake's fully charged protective Aura harmlessly. A small nap or a few hours of rest usually filled an Aura user's depleted reserves.

There were a few more thunderous cracks as multiple muskets were shot in her general direction. She weaved through them with ease, usually leaving a shadow clone to take the fall for the occasional lucky hit.

She internally cursed her thoughts for distracting her enough to not notice the ambush the crazed militiamen mounted on the abandoned chapel.

Her cat ears twitched underneath her tricorn hat as more than half a dozen mangy attack dogs made their presence known. Her hands went to her messenger bag to fish out two molotov cocktails. She had a few seconds to eliminate the attack dogs before the militiamen started firing their crude rifles again.

She let the two incendiary bottles on one of her hands with the cloth sticking out of the bottles loosely. Her other hand gripped Evelyn and aimed it at the nearest attack mutt, while the tip of the barrel of the firearm was touching the cloth of the bottles lightly. With a pull of the trigger, the muzzle flashed and the sparks ignited the cloth of the cocktails, thus priming them. Hot mercury shot out Evelyn pierced the skull of one of the nearest dogs, killing it.

' _Not yet.'_

The other hounds were unfazed with the death of their companion as they rushed at Blake. She holstered her firearm before she held both molotov cocktails with both of her hands, waiting patiently for the hounds to coalesce into one easy target.

' _Not yet.'_

They were closing in on her. With every meter they reached, they slowly clumped into a small mob. Their natural instincts dictated them to hunt their prey in packs. Groups of two became three as they slowly coalesced into a large pack.

' _Now!'_

With Aura enhanced legs, she leapt upwards towards the sky as she left behind a shadow clone to the mercy of the dogs. Her hands threw the incendiary projectile towards the mangy mutts.

The first bottle hit the front of the pack while the second one hit the rear end of it.

The pained wails of the burning canines were drowned out as Blake's mind zeroed in on her targets mid flight.

It was a small patrol that hunkered down and used the some of the debris as cover. She surmised that they took out their targets crippling them by the initial gunfire and they let the attack dogs do the killing blow and if they survived another volley of bullets would do the job.

The moment Blake landed, she rushed towards the nearest rifleman and delivered a quick strike using her Blade of Mercy. The weapon sang as the steel tore through flesh. It was a violent song that her ears were already getting used to. She didn't mind the song as it was a sweet melody she welcomed.

The weapon split in two into its twin curved dagger form. The metallic song continued on as two other militiamen throats were slit by her curved blades. Blake continued her dance of death at the rythme of her Blade of Mercy.

* * *

Blake heartily drank a bottle full of sedatives. The liquid calmed her mind and took away her more violent urges and instincts at bay.

Blood now caked her entire attire. Her fatigue gone and her strength were now recovered from the blood she has shed from her enemies. It was a form of combat she was getting used to. She used her weapons as brutally as possible; the more blood and gore she tears away from her opponents, the more she can recover wounds and fatigue. Dust, she even had the comfort of conserving her Aura for more tasks other than her protection. Sure, it was painful but her liberal use of sedatives dulled the her pain and her bloodlust.

' _This room seems to be empty too. I still question why there's a cliche underground tunnel underneath the abandoned chapel_. _They even have a lever triggered door! Can't this get anymore stereotypical?_ '

Her shoulders sagged in annoyance as she walked down the stairwell that led to a rather large basement. It was _another_ room filled to the brim with clay pots and urns that were taller than her, just like the previous other rooms. Right across the room was a massive door covered with various signs and hastily painted warnings on it.

Upon closer inspection, all the signs were conveying one message: the desire to drive away anyone who wanted to venture deeper within the older districts of Yharnam.

"'Hunters aren't welcome', huh?" Blake muttered aloud. "Well it's not really barricaded and it's already slightly open so I guess it's fine."

Blake exhaled audibly as she let Aura pool within her hands. She let her full weight and Aura enhanced strength to open the door fully. The massive doors creaked as the rust of the old hinges grinded with each other. The old wood of the door groaned at the action. She slipped past it without really minding what lies beyond the doors, thus she was bombarded by quite a stunning view of the older part of the city.

'Whoa…" Blake gasped out in surprise as she took in what she saw.

The orange and purples of the early night sky invaded her vision. It was a magnificent and terrifying sight to behold. The stray sunrays barely touching the decrepit tips of the old buildings accentuated the complex and gothic architecture that Yharnam so liberally incorporated in every nook and cranny of the city.

Rapid gunfire of a heavy gatling gun snapped her out of her revery. The path of the bullets came from one of the taller towers within the older district. The projectiles grazed by a long ways away from her as a form of a warning shot.

' _Wait, wait, wait, wait! Automatic weapons!? I thought they didn't exist yet! Keyword here is 'yet'!'_

"You there, Hunter. Did you not see the warning?" A familiar voice bellowed out as it echoed throughout the area.

Her golden eyes dilated as she realized who the speaker was. "Coco!?"

Her surprise died down as her mind was already piecing the pieces together. She already saw people who wore the faces of her friends. She shouldn't be surprised by this development at all. The fact that she was in a different dimension altogether already should have been her largest hint.

"Turn back at once." Coco began again, her voice echoing throughout the old district. "Old Yharnam, burned and abandoned by men, is now home only to beasts. They are of no harm to those above. Turn back…" Her voice trailed off as it seems to have a tinge of melancholy laced within it. The echoes died as her voice lowered a couple decibels. "...or the Hunter will face the hunt…"

' _What is she thinking protecting beasts? It's as suicidal as protecting Grimm! Has she lost her mind?!'_

Blake sighed in annoyance at the ignorance of this world's version of Coco. The beasts were mindless mutants whose only wish to feast upon the flesh anything that isn't them. They are unintelligible creatures that are solely driven by hunger. They were the bane of this world's sentient species. They were this world's Grimm.

As a Huntress, her duty was to hunt and destroy Grimm.

' _I'm so sorry Coco.'_

And as a Hunter, it was to slaughter the beasts.

' _I have to do this.'_

Steeling her resolve, she bolted past the small bridge with enough speed to keep up Ruby's Semblance. There were a few beasts milling about the broken and burned down buildings. They were clothed with thick cloaks as a petty attempt to convey their long lost humanity.

Blake ducked, weaved, and leapt through most of the gangly creatures. Those who posed as an actual obstruction were quickly dispatched with either a throwing knife or maimed by her Blade of Mercy.

The mounted weapon at the top of the tower crackled as it spit out out hot projectiles in rapid successions close to Blake's heels, barely grazing her. The insane accuracy with automatic weapons of this world's Coco was as impressive as her Remnant counterpart. She occasionally used a stray beast as a meat shield just to aggravate her attacker.

She dove inside an abandoned building for cover. The barrage of bullets stopped, giving her enough time to catch her breath and let her heal her fatigue with one of her blood vials. There was a sigh of relief that escaped her lips as the healing liquid rejuvenated her.

' _Alright. My Aura can take hits from that gatling gun, but I'll have to conserve them for the inevitable.'_

"Huh..." Her hand touched a piece of paper beside her. It was an tattered note, clearly ripped from a journal of sorts. The edges were mottled with small drops of blood.

 _The red moon hangs low, and the beasts rule the streets._

 _Are we left no other choice, than burn it all to cinders?_

The silence was broken as a Hunter entered the room. This Hunter was skilled enough with stealth to sneak past her Faunus senses. The other Hunter wore a tattered Hunter's uniform covered in ash and soot. Black fur was jutting out at the seams of the outfit, trying to escape the unruly cloth. His right hand held a crude mimicry of a beast claw made up of steel and bone while his left was an actual beast claw grafted onto his arm.

"...You are a skilled Hunter. Adept, merciless, half-cut with blood. As the best Hunters are." The words were garbled out in a gravely state, but Blake was sure the voice that came out of the Hunter belonged to Fox Alistair. "Which is why I must stop you."

"This _is_ mercy!" Blake snarled out at the ignorance of her opponent.

Fox responded with a quick lunge and a slash. The claw grazed her Aura's protective barrier. As her body twisted to avoid the full force of the attack, she quickly unsheathed her Blade of Mercy and Evelyn.

The next attack was from the crude claw that targeted her. It was blocked by the barrel of her firearm while her blade riposted, delivering a cruel slash at Fox. The only protection he had was his beast hide which proved to be more than enough. The blade only caused enough damage to cause bleeding but not serious enough to kill. It was like fighting against someone with an unlocked Aura.

Blake clicked her tongue in annoyance. She didn't need to have the luxury to fight a nuisance right now. She needed to kill Fox, fast.

Seizing Blake's distraction, Fox rushed again but it was different this time. He leapt skywards with his two claws propped up above his head in preparation to a powerful attack. It was an obviously telegraphed attack, but what baffled her the most was how _physics_ seemed to _break_ as the slow fall of the Hunter's lunged seemed to hasten at the speed of a bullet.

Blake didn't have time to dodge. She had to take the attack full force.

With only nanoseconds to spare, she pulled the trigger of Evelyn and shot hot mercury towards her speeding opponent. The quicksilver bullet tore through Fox's shoulder but this did not deter him however, as he continued on his trajectory.

His full weight and beast claws slammed into Blake's Aura in an attempt to tear through it. Fox was clawing at her, trying to get a hit in. Her Aura groaned in protest at the attacks as she grit her teeth in frustration.

Evelyn was now empty holstered as she prepared a counterattack that felt more like a desperate gambit than anything.

She made a shadow clone in place of her before sidestepping and moving close to her opponent's back for a backstab while letting the clone take the hits for her. He noticed this however and spun to face her. Instead of using his beast claws to respond, he let out guttural roars powerful enough that they created a small shockwaves that pushed everything away from Fox.

"This is _nothing!_ "

The shockwaves did nothing to deter her steel determination. She used her Aura to plant her feet firmly on the floor. With every ounce of her strength, she concentrated her soul's energy to wreath her blade of the energy. The Blade of Mercy started to glow in a dull coloration of her Aura, wreathing it in it's strength.

With a loud roar, Blake rushed to Fox with her weapon pointed towards him.

The short sword pierced him thoroughly. The tip of her blade jutted out of his back. With a twist and a click, the Blade of Mercy split in two inside the torso and with a mighty heave, Blake bisected her opponent, effectively killing him. His blood painted the floor in its crimson coloration.

"Sorry Fox." Blake muttered without any concern in her voice. Her lips were already licking the stray droplets of blood that had made their way to her face and facemask.

A quick glance from a broken window indicated to her that her next target's tower was just a ways away. There were beasts still roaming the area, apparently they didn't notice the noise and carnage of their fight. They were no threat to her as her main concerns was directed more towards the Hunter up above with the gatling gun.

With a few quick injections of her blood vials, she was now ready for the inevitable duel against Coco. She delivered a quick glance at her handiwork before strutting away for her next fight.

' _Time to deal with your boss, then.'_

* * *

Blake has surmised that Coco assumed that her partner has killed her due to the fact that she wasn't tearing the district with the gatling gun. Although, stealth did serve her well. The shadows cast by the massive buildings and spires were her friends, after all.

She had two options to storm the tower: either use the ladders she saw on the side of the building or she could climb up the wall using her skills in free running. The ladders were the easiest choice but could be used against her as an ambush while scaling the wall would have given her the element of surprise.

Deciding that caution was more important than the easier choice, she started scaling the wall. Hands and feet grabbing onto loose bricks and cracks of the wall, using them as impromptu platforms. _'Element of surprise it is then.'_

When she was a mere few meters away from the top of the tower, she pooled her Aura and concentrated it to assist her jump. She was already utilising concentrated Aura for her combat more and more, unlike her time in Remnant. Aura based martial arts were never her forte but with her time in Yharnam, she found it more useful out of necessity.

With Aura reinforced legs, she jumped a few meters above the edge of the ledge.

Time seemed to dilate and lurch as she corrected herself midflight. She spotted her target still fiddling with the automatic weapon. Her hands reached towards her bandoliers for her numerous throwing knives. Before she could throw them however, Coco spun to Blake's general direction with a pistol in hand.

The firearm cracked as a bullet came out, hurdling itself to Blake. With as much effort as she can, she spun whilst midair to avoid the bullet. The projectile merely clipped her tricorn hat, thus removing it from her head without any damage caused to said hat fell to the abyss that was down below.

Her bow was now out in the open for all to see, not that she didn't mind. Everyone who would see it are probably horribly mutated by now.

Before her descent finished, she threw six throwing knives that flew directly towards Coco. The hostile Hunter merely _detached_ the gatling gun from the turret platform and used the thing to _block_ the thrown projectiles. A couple managed to embed themselves to her limbs but none of the wounds the knives caused were too deep to cause any real damage to a Hunter's body.

This Coco was wearing a torn and tattered Hunter's uniform that was dyed ash white. The entire attire was decorated with white feathers and white wolf fur, giving it a much more feral impression. What was baffling to Blake though was the fact that she didn't have any melee weapons. All Coco had was the gatling gun, her pistol, and a blunderbuss slung to her back.

Blake landed with finesse as she unhooked and unsheathed Evelyn and the Blade of Mercy. Her element of surprise was now gone.

"You slippery cat! The makings of a true Hunter, this lass!" Coco let out a manic and hearty laugh as she hefted the gatling gun and vaguely gestured towards Blake.

Blake practically spat out in disgust before saying anything. "Your friend is dead and it's all because of your stupid, _stupid_ ignorance. I merely acted out in self defense."

"I see... Very well." Blake could almost feel the vile hostility that radiated at her opponent. "Then there's no need to hold back! The beasts will feast tonight!" And with that, their battle to the death started.

The massive firearm cracked to life as it let out a hail of bullets. Blake sidestepped and weaved through the sweep of the gatling gun. It wasn't easy to dodge the projectiles as they were moving faster than the eye could track, so the only effective thing to do was to duck and evade as much as possible.

Seeing that they were at a stalemate in ranged combat. Coco rushed hastily to attack. The gatling gun was used in a most unusual way; it was used as a bashing weapon. The weight of it would be enough to break bones alone and a direct hit from a few of the swipes would be devastating to anyone who didn't have Aura to protect them or the unique physiology of Hunter biology.

She swiped it in wide arcs. Blake evaded most of it, but those she couldn't were blocked by her blade. All of the attacks she blocked were devastating, taking away chunks of her Aura's strength. She grit her teeth as blocked attack after attack.

' _I need to get in the offensive!'_

She made two shadow clones for her plan. One of them was to distract Coco while the other one was merely used as a platform. The second clone propelled her skywards. She summoned another clone midflight to stop her ascent and use as a platform. Kicking her third shadow clone, she gained momentum as she lunged. It was the same attack she used against the Cleric Beast; hoping that this world's Coco wouldn't see through the attack.

Unfortunately, she did.

She used her pistol on her off hand to block the Blade of Mercy. The barrel of the firearm groaned in protest as the siderite steel's sheer force managed to deliver a few cracks to the pistol with only the first attack.

Coco brought her gatling gun in an upward swipe. The cylindrical multi-barrel hit Blake with enough force to break bones. She was thrown away, but not before the hook shaped tip of her blade caught Coco's pistol. Seeing the opportunity, Blake twisted her Blade of Mercy and it broke the pistol's barrel.

She landed on the stone floor with a loud thud, but she didn't mind the pain as she already obtained a minor victory. She took away one of her opponent's weapons effectively cutting her offensive power by a third.

Coco unslung her blunderbuss to replace her broken pistol. She took a much more sturdier stance to compensate for the weight and the recoil of both weapons.

Blake flashed a feral grin at her opponent. "Round two starts now."

She threw a couple more throwing knives at her opponent's general direction. Coco responded with pointing her blunderbuss at the general direction of the projectiles. She pulled the trigger; the pellets deflected the throwing knives, rendering them useless as they clattered to the ground uselessly.

' _I knew you'd do that!'_

After the pellets deflected the projectiles, Blake threw all of her oil urns at the unsuspecting Hunter. The urns cracked as they hit their intended target; oil spilling everywhere and clinging to her opponent's ashe white clothing. They only did minimal damage at best, but this was what she planned.

The contents of the urns were now all over the area where Coco was standing and her firearms were rendered useless unless she wanted to burn herself.

Without missing a beat, Blake took out a couple more throwing knives and the papers that held the precious elemental resins. Orange resins were hastily rubbed on the throwing projectiles. Embers sparked to life as the knives caught fire.

"Checkmate."

They were burning like the primitive weapons of early Remnant when Dust was merely used to coat weapons in elemental properties. Such an age old technique was never used again with the development of finer control of Dust, but in this situation, Blake didn't have the luxury of being refined and civilized.

With a great heave and the Aura enhanced strength of her reinforced arms, she threw her throwing knives at a blinding speed. Coco sidestepped to avoid the projectiles, but she wasn't their intended target. The burning projectiles impacted the ground beneath her feet, igniting the oil that was haphazardly scattered around her. The black liquid burned at an alarming rate, as the fire was spreading to whatever surface the oil was spread.

Coco's own attire caught the flame as it snaked towards her from the trail of oil it left. The flames were searing her skin. Her flesh cooked at the extreme heat, but she didn't cry out in pain. She ignored it to attack her opponent in vengeance.

Sensing the murderous killing intent of her opponent, Blake rushed head on towards the hostile Hunter with blade in hand and firearm at the other. Her Aura protected her form from being burnt by the inferno as she rushed with manic glee.

Coco covered her torso to block whatever attack was coming, but Blake was aiming for something different. She swept low and caught one of the hostile Hunter's leg in a swipe. the blade sang as it bit and spilled blood. Bones cracked at the contact with siderite steel. Using the still existing momentum, she spun to gain more of it as she slashed upwards and caught the arm that was holding the blunderbuss. The Blade of Mercy cleaved clean through the arm, dismembering it.

Blake kicked her burnt opponent away from the inferno and near the end of a ledge. She casually sauntered to her broken adversary, her blade still ready for more blood to be spilt and her pistol aimed directly at Coco's head.

"It's you… You're the beast..." Coco gasped out in pain. Her voice filled with as much venom as she could muster. "Just think about what you're doing... It's utter madness…"

She scoffed at her opponent. "Maybe."

With a pull of a trigger, Evelyn cracked out in glee as it's mercury round pierced Coco's skull. The sound of gunfire echoed throughout the district, carrying the message of death. Her form fell limp as death took her away from the cruel nature of the waking world.

Blake's face slowly crept up to meet the sky's gaze. Her golden eye's met the crimson and purple of the cosmos.

"Maybe..."

* * *

 **Author's Notes:**

" **This is Yharnam FM telling all you kids to drink blood in moderation! Anyway, I've got some sick tracks here that'll cause frenzy to all you kids with insight! Hit it, Rom!"**

 _ ***Unintelligible eldritch noises came as a response***_

 **Still** _ **really**_ **iffy about fight scenes. Conversation still seems to be easier to write than fight scenes. I still suck at both but I find conversations** _ **waaaay**_ **easier to do.**

 **With the revelations of volume 3 chapter 12, a few of my plans for fanfics are kinda gone now. And here I thought I was only gonna play catch up. Such is the way of writing fanfic of an unfinished show is I guess.**

 **Is it too late to start Weiss-cream's Bizarre Adventure now? I mean, we could have Yang as either Joseph or Avdol. Zwei is obviously Iggy, Weiss is the protagonist but she'll be Polnareff, Ruby'll be Jotaro I guess, and lastly Blake is Kakyoin for reasons. I mean, the names of their Stands would be their leitmotif, right?**

 **I really need to stop talking about JoJo's Bizarre Adventure...**

 **Welp on to new frontiers I guess.**

 **Also… DAMMIT BLAKE! AGAIN?!**

 **Ahem…**

 **You know, I always found it more engaging to just kill Djura than to take the pacifist option. Besides, making him fall is always funny and rarely gets old.**

 **I am currently replaying Bloodborne to get a feel of the areas again and to prepare myself for Dark Souls 3. I kinda need to practice so that I can get through DS3 with unarmed combat. Hopefully they have better unarmed weapons in that game. I'll stick with Rakuyo as a substitute for Blade of Mercy for this run though.**

 **See you in the next chapter.**


	7. Blood-Starved Beast

**I really should get a new PC. Mine is basically on its last legs and is probably gonna die within the next few months. Besides, I kinda need a new one for school. Why must the Canadian economy shite itself?**

 **Anyway…**

' **Life of a Mage Turned Huntress' will be released within a few days. Hopefully you readers will like it! Hopefully...**

 **On with the show then.**

* * *

 **The Night Unfurls**

 **Chapter 6**

 **Blood-Starved Beast**

* * *

Blake sighed as she waited for the tear in reality to open. Her hand hovered just above the stone floor, concentration wavering from the annoyance she felt.

After her kerfuffle with the two Hunters that resembled Coco and Fox, she was ambushed by a city's worth of child sized mutated beasts. Their bites inflicted her with enough poison to kill a Goliath. The rest was obviously history.

' _Poison is such a pain in the ass... Ugh, why did my Aura shatter at the worst possible time? I'm already running low on supplies...'_

To counteract the this, she went back to the Dream to collect antidotes for the poison and restocked on supplies. What she actually spent her time on was cleaning up the filth that caked her and getting a new attire to replace the one she was wearing. She deemed it too filthy to wear, so did Eleanor and the Doll apparently.

She now wore one of Eleanor's old Hunter attires. She was wearing a decorated vest, a white dress shirt, and a dull scarf over a grey longcoat that went until the calves of her legs. Her trousers were fairly standard affair, but she was wearing armored leather boots with engravings on it. The gauntlets she was wearing was of a similar set to the boots but were made from a combination of steel and leather. Her bandoliers were now hidden inside her longcoat but some them were replaced with the numerous pockets of the dull coat. Her facemask was still worn like a scarf and the new tricorn hat now sported some protrusions similar to shredded Beowolf ears.

Amidst all this, she completely forgot what she went to the Dream for.

And so this is where her current conundrum lied.

She surmised that she was in the lowest possible point in Yharnam, considering that the beasts have mutated enough to create poisons from the filth. The surrounding areas being as dimly lit as possible, with the shadows cast by upper wards, was another evidence that supported the fact.

A bubbling portal opened just a few inches above her hand. A handful of ghoulish humanoids appeared out if it. Most of them were wearing top hats and tricorn hats, while the rest were mimicking Blake and wore black bows.

Her eyebrows curled up in confusion before she replaced her expression with her smiling lightly at the Messengers. "I need some stuff, can you get them? I need antidotes, some ammo, more blood vials, maybe a dozen or more throwing knives, and maybe a couple of molotov cocktails."

They all gave a mock salute as a response.

"Here, take my bag and put the stuff inside it." She took her pen and ink before she offered them her leather messenger bag. They took it with palpable glee before disappearing within the portal.

When the portal closed, Blake sat beside a wall with her back against it. She unclipped her journal from her belt and started jotting down into it. She needed to pass time after all.

* * *

 _Journal Entry Number 5_

 _It's almost been a week since I got here. Everyone I see in this world seemed to be look like people I know. I think that's further proof that I'm in an alternate dimension, or something. The only exception are the beasts for obvious reasons, Eleanor, the Doll, and Eileen -or at least I think, the plague mask doesn't really help. This business with inter-dimensional travel hurts my head. Good thing I these excursions keeps me busy._

(Ink splats, scratched out words, and a few scribbles fills this section.)

" _The one in back,_

 _The way he acts,_

 _Is he reminding you of anyone we know?_

 _Isn't he so_

 _Like certain people I could name?"_

 _I guess that's appropriate here? I'm never really good with poems and stuff. That's where Weiss excels at. Weiss... Weiss, Ruby, Yang... Dust, I miss all of them so much._

(Tears messed with the paper along with blobs of ink.)

 _What I wouldn't do just to see them again. Murder's already in that list, along with arson and cannibalism too if someone squints hard enough. Dust, I guess I should add a slight case of insanity too._

 _It's still frustrating that Eleanor still can't find anything from all the books I already got for her. I know it's not my place to complain, but I'm already getting too antsy. The constant consumption of the blood isn't helping either._

 _Well, whatever. I'll do what I can, so I can go back and hold them again. And this time, I won't let them go or run away._

 _I guess this is another entry without any real content in it._

 _End of Entry Number 5_

* * *

Blake wiped the stray tears off her face with the scarf of her new attire. She needed to be strong for herself. She needed to push her emotions away if she wanted to survive here. She took a deep breathe as she wore the stoic mask she used regularly before entering Beacon and just after the time she left the White Fang.

The facade kept her stable for a while. Stable enough to keep going through life monotonously like a machine. If this is what she could resort to just to survive, then so be it. She already committed a couple of murders, so this was cheap and easy.

Easy enough for survival.

There was a small distortion in reality as a bubbling portal came into existence. The Messengers came back with her bag in tow. Blake took the it without hesitation. She opened it to confirm if her things were there. Pills of antidotes, blood vials neatly tucked within, throwing knives wrapped in some cloth, and a couple of bottles filled with flammable liquid.

She thanked the Messengers and patted each of them on the head. The portal closed and the tear in reality closed neatly.

Blake stood up and dusted herself as she slung the bag onto herself. She put the throwing knives inside easy to access pockets from her attire and some of them went to her bandoliers. The blood vials were secured neatly inside her bandoliers along with her mercury bullets. Her journal was now neatly tucked inside her messenger bag, along with whatever extra supplies she has.

She let out a long sigh as she started trudging through another blood soaked day in Yharnam.

* * *

The lower districts were stuck at a perpetual night, somewhat in a stasis. Always covered by Yharnam's omnipresent shadow that hid whatever monstrosities that lurked in the shadows. The lower districts were also teeming with beasts that have developed poisons that could kill larger competition quite easily. This was why Blake carried a ridiculous amount of antidotes.

Blake's Blade of Mercy sang with glee as it shed the blood of another child sized beast. The gangling monstrosity grasped its throat as the viscous liquid spilled all over the dirt floor and its lungs desperately tried to take in air. She pushed the beast to the ground as it squirmed and waited painfully for its death.

Evelyn let loose a round of hot mercury as it pierced the head of another child sized beast. The creature instantly keeled over and slumped onto the ground, dead. Its body fell limp onto the dirt road.

There were three more that entered the fray, but were wary not to engage in combat. They were all lingering and circling around her, planning in an attack of some sort. Their red eyes pierced the cloaks they were wearing.

Blake took the initiative of the situation.

She threw six throwing knives, two for each beast. Her Aura enhanced muscles giving them enough force to break stone. The first two landed on their intended target, taking away chunks of the creature's torso; it would die from blood loss. The second pair hit another beast on the head, killing it instantly. The last volley was dodged by the third beast. It seems this one was smart enough to evade an oncoming attack.

Fortunately Blake saw this outcome. She propelled herself towards the beast, blade first. The double helix blade pierced the beast's torso, pinning it to a nearby pillar. She drew Evelyn out of its holster and shot the firearm directly underneath the creature's chin. Gray matter splattered all over the pillar and her attire.

She wiped the blood off her face and took inventory of the area. The beasts she encountered were already dead or dying.

She holstered her Cainhurst pistol, and proceeded to decapitate the scattered corpses. Double tapping was always a good option. A sneak attack from an opponent playing possum was the worst, after all.

After the deed was done, Blake continued on her way.

The beasts she encountered were now weary of her. The smaller beasts turned tail and ran away at the sight of her, while the larger beasts would either attack her one by one or would coordinate a joint attack.

They were no match for her, however. The blood she has consumed from the all of her slain enemies made her stronger, faster, resilient. It was another benefit of Yharnam blood, Eleanor told her. She didn't know how it works per se, but it was a benefit she accepted. It did however have quite the list of side effects: from addiction to insanity. It's a good thing that Blake had the mental fortitude and a clear goal to keep her from losing her way.

Blake was following the path that descended towards deeper within Old Yharnam. The architecture obviously indicated a much more older design, quite possibly the oldest in design if she thought too much. The buildings were old enough to crumble, even if they were made of sturdy stone.

The end of the road had a chapel. It was old and decrepit, much like the rest of the building in Old Yharnam. It was neatly tucked within the district, but was large enough to be seen in most of the area. She was nearing the chapel, only a few more turns until she was there and see if there was any tomes to salvage.

She stopped in her tracks as she took in the scene unfolding in front of her.

It was utter chaos; it was pandemonium .Burning crucifixes, mangled bodies, and beasts fleeing from the scene. The beasts ignored Blake as they ran past her. They ran with their metaphoric tails tucked between their legs. They bumped and trampled each other on great haste. This was curious behavior for the beasts, but not surprising if they were mere animals.

A loud shriek of death echoed throughout Old Yharnam. It was a plee of mercy from what is most likely a beast. It sent shivers down her spine. All the beasts she has killed always stared her down in defiance, so what monstrosity could possibly cause the beast from pissing itself?

With weary legs, Blake ran to the source of the screams of pain; the chapel.

' _That doesn't sound good at all.'_

* * *

Blake arrived at the chapel without a moment to spare, but she wasn't sure what to feel with what she saw.

It was another Hunter looming over a decaying corpse of a mangled beast.

The beast itself was deformed, quadrupedal creature whose skin was peeled off and hanging from its back. Much like the Cleric Beast, it also had a malnourished, skeletal appearance with its rib cage jutting out if its chest. It didn't matter now, as the creature itself was killed mercilessly by another Hunter. Its blood spilled all over the chapel as some sort macabre painting.

The Hunter -a woman judging by the overall build of their body- was wearing a dirtied white longcoat with the Healing Church's aesthetic and cape like protrusion at the back of the coat. She was wearing plate gauntlets and plate leggings. Her entire attire was finished with a dark wide brimmed hat and a facemask that only showed her eyes and some tufts of silver hair. Her eyes were much like a Grimm's, having black sclerae and red pupils.

The Grimm eyed Hunter hefted a silver greatsword near her shoulder. The blade had been covered with numerous bandages all over the business end of it. She poked the dead beast with the greatsword as if a child saddened by their favorite toy being torn to shreds.

The bloodsoaked Hunter slowly crept their head to look towards Blake. There was casual ease at the gesture that made Blake shudder. It was the utter lack of surprise and the arrogant posture that made it all the worst. The Grimm eyes judging assessing her if she was a threat.

Those red pupils bore enough ill will that Blake briefly considered just using a Bold Hunter's Mark to get away from them. The Grimm eyed Hunter's posture went lax seeing that there was no danger to Blake.

"Oh? It seems that I have a guest." The voice that came out of the Hunter was a siren song to any and all who heard it.

Blake slowly stepping away from her scene. The killing intent that radiated from the Hunter was ridiculously strong, even if the Hunter's sickeningly sweet voice was coercing her to think otherwise. The killing intent was palpable enough that Blake's throat felt dry from the fear. It took tremendous mental fortitude for Blake to resist the alluring song of the siren's voice. Her previously dubbed 'insanity' was helping her resist.

"Who -who are you?" Blake gasped out, slightly stuttering at her own words

The Hunter put a finger near where her mouth is in a mocking inquisitive gesture. Her Grimm eyes lit up as if she found the proper response. "None of your concern, little kitten."

Blake's golden eyes widened to the size of saucers at the offhanded remark. "How.. How do you know..?"

"Hmm… Perhaps a lucky guess? No matter…" The Hunter shrugged as she hefted the bandaged greatsword towards Blake.

The weapon was suddenly wreathed in ethereal blue and green light. The light squirmed and formed into multiple incomprehensible forms. Green and blue tendrils of light wrapped the bandaged greatsword in all of their glory. Wisps of the light coalesced into a solid form, turning the energy into a massive sword. Stars and the great abyss of the cosmos could be seen appearing and reforming within the blade. Embers of green light were regularly shed from the ethereal weapon.

The Hunter pointed the ethereal greatsword to Blake. The green and blue light intensified as the weapon concentrated its energy towards the point of the weapon. The Hunter swung the weapon in a wide arc, discharging the energy.

An arc of green and blue energy from the weapon lanced towards Blake at blinding speeds. Her instincts flared as her legs propelled her away from the oncoming attack. The blade of energy slammed at a nearby pillar, destroying it.

"Wait, what? What are you doing?!" Blake shouted in a panic at the display of power. She reluctantly unsheathed the Blade of Mercy and Evelyn. There was a slight sting at her shoulder. Looking at it, there was a slight tear at her sleeve but her Aura protected her from any real harm.

"Cutting down the competition, of course." The Hunter replied nonchalantly. She brought her ethereal weapon on her shoulder and rushed towards Blake.

The Hunter brought down the weapon in a downward slash. The double helix short sword and the long barrel pistol blocked the ethereal weapon. The siderite of Blake's sword and the steel of her firearm groaned in protest at the contact with the otherworldly weapon.

With deft hands and quick reflexes, Blake spun her body as she elbowed the blade away. Within a split second, Evelyn roared as it shot out hot mercury blindly at the hostile Hunter. The mercury round penetrated her shoulder, but Blake wasn't done. Using her momentum, she pivoted and used her leg to deliver a cruel kick towards her opponent's face.

The Hunter stepped backwards at the attack. Her damaged shoulder merely spat out the mercury bullet and cauterized the wound. She cracked her neck a few times to get the kinks out.

Blake was weary of the woman. That casual display of power was not to be trifled with. She holstered Evelyn and split her Blade of Mercy into its curved twin dagger form. The thought of facing someone with superior range was grim. Blake had to be cautious in this fight.

"Why are you doing this?" The more time she could buy for herself, the better. Her brain was already wracking for a solution for her current misfortune; to run or to fight?

Her instincts told her to run away, and her mind agreed with the conclusion. _'Let the fight keep going until I find the opportunity to use the Bold Hunter's Mark. A liberal use of my Semblance might work too.'_

The Hunter swung again. Blake dodged as the ethereal blade slammed the ground with enough force to crack the stone floor. She lunged at the Hunter with her twin daggers at the ready. The cosmic weapon met the siderite of the twin daggers in a block.

"A creature of light such as yourself has no qualms with the Great Ones. I, on the other hand, have." The Hunter let her left hand touch the glowing blue and green blade and pushed it with tremendous force. The flat of the blade slammed at Blake's Aura, the force of the hit was enough to throw her around like a ragdoll. Only stopping when her back hit a pillar.

The hostile Hunter rushed at Blake again, with pure glee shining within her Grimm eyes.

"Damn it!" Blake grit her teeth as she prepared her defense. She was cornered, but she could still dodge or get a better position.

The hostile Hunter with Grimm eyes started swinging wildly, without rhyme or reason. Blake dodged whatever she could, and blocked the attacks with either her Aura or her twin curved daggers.

"Stop!" Blake gasped out as she dodged another attack. "I'm on the same side!" Her twin daggers groaned in defiance as the siderite steel met with the cosmic energy of the ethereal blade.

The Hunter chuckled lightly at the futile pleas of the Faunus. "Or so you claim. A kitten like you should not play with games you do not comprehend."

She swung in a wide horizontal arc, bisecting anything unfortunate that would cross its path. Blake used the devastating attack to her advantage. She coupled her twin daggers into the double helix sword as she let loose with her Semblance. A shadow clone took the hit for her, while she used another to propel herself skyward. She used another and another creating great distance between her and the hostile Hunter with Grimm eyes.

The Hunter retaliated with sending wave after wave of ethereal arcs of energy flying across the room. All of the arcs of ethereal energy were destroyed or halted with all the shadow clones that were used as platforms and corporeal meat shields.

At the apex of her makeshift flight, her free hand quickly groped the object she needed: a Bold Hunter's Mark. She crushed the parchment at the palm of her hand. It turned to ash at the action. The Mark dulled her sense of falling as she was caught by her trusty Messengers.

A bubbling portal tore through reality. Countless bone white ghoulish hands grabbed Blake's falling body, pulling her within the tear in reality. The portal closed and she disappeared within it.

A feeling of nothingness invaded her senses. The soft caresses of the Messengers did not register within her mind. Her body was afloat in a sea of darkness, the only light within it was her soul.

The feeling of nothingness disappeared as she awoke at the familiar sight of white lilies and the shattered moon. She was lying on her back with the lilies surrounding her comfortably.

"Hah… Hah… I can't believe that worked." Blake gasped out as relief overtook her.

There was a figure that approached her. A porcelain face with quicksilver eyes and silver hair greeted the Faunus. The Doll had a look of confusion that was superimposed over her usually stoic visage. "What worked, Young Hunter?"

* * *

The tear in reality closed as the portal dissipated into wisps of nothingness. The ash white limbs dissipated with it.

"Interesting." The Hunter with Grimm eyes mumbled to herself. She lowered her weapon in a much more casual stance.

Her Holy Moonlight Sword writhed as the ethereal blue and green light slowly dissipated into nothingness as well. The weapon went back to its original form, the bandaged greatsword. She planted the weapon to the ground as a mock platform to put her elbows on.

"It seems your pawn has some tricks up her sleeve, Gehrman." She wistfully replied to no one. Her Grimm eyes lit up in glee at the twist her cosmic game went. Flashes of a blonde bespectacled woman with grim determination in her icy blue eyes invaded the Hunter's thoughts. The thought of her brought a small laugh to the Hunter.

"I look forward to breaking her soul."

* * *

 **Author's Notes:**

 **Guuhhh… Writing with no verbal communication is getting to me. It's actually harder than it looks, for me anyway. Maybe picking Bloodborne for a crossover was a bad idea? Too late to back down now…**

 **I must admit, the rival Hunter was just supposed to be another OC that would represent invaders from the game. After seeing Salem though, I fell in love with the whole "Humanoid Grimm Goddess" idea and her overall design. I mean, she looks totes badass.**

 **If you want a reference to what Salem is wearing here, it's actually the Old Hunter cap, Cainhurst gauntlets, Tomb Prospector garb, and Cainhurst leggings.**

 **The poem Blake wrote at the journal entry is from "They Might be Giants - Certain People", or more precisely from the TV Tropes page about Expy.**

 **The Journal Entry is at 5 now since Blake has been writing constantly "off-screen" or something. Honestly, just rolling a d20 usually gives me number I use. Is this the part where I say "teehee"?**

 **See you in the next chapter?**


	8. Soothing Hymn

**As many of you who have noticed, I jotted down some of my story ideas in my profile. It's because I've been thinking of writing another story. It's between 'Accentuate the Positive' and 'Moving Mountains'. I'm heavily leaning towards 'Accentuate the Positive' myself.**

 **What do you guys think? What should I write?**

 **Anyway...**

 **Seeing as how the reaction to 'Life of a Mage Turned Huntress' was mixed (as was expected since I** _ **am**_ **a shit tier writer), I have decided to** _ **not**_ **kitbash those two universes together for the foreseeable future. I'll stick to kitbashing Gundam kits instead.**

 **Sigh...**

 **On with the show, then.**

* * *

 **The Night Unfurls**

 **Chapter 7**

 **Soothing Hymn**

* * *

"What worked, Young Hunter?"

Blake blinked away her fatigue as her eyes adjusted to whoever was addressing her. It was the Doll. The familiar maroon dress and dark cloak with intricate embroidery were slowly bellowing at the light gusts of the Dream's mystic winds. Her quicksilver eyes blinked in confusion as the Doll caught the harrowed look the cat Faunus held.

"Huh? Oh, Doll!" Blake shifted slightly on the caress of the white lilies as she tried to compose herself. The attempt was a poor one since she was still prone on the ground. A tactical change of the subject and an attempt to stand up were needed to regain her composure. "Where's Eleanor?"

The Doll's head bobbed and tilted slightly in confusion. "What for?"

"I-I think…" Flashes of her fight with the Grimm eyed Hunter with the ethereal cosmic blade flooded her mind. The mere thought of the odd combination filled her mind with visions of the great void of the cosmos with those red irises and ethereal weapon superimposed within the vision. She shook those thoughts away from her. "I think I saw something that should be our number one priority."

"Very well then. I shall bring you to her." The Doll nodded in agreement with Blake, even if the situation was still too confusing for the porcelain woman. She turned and proceeded to walk towards the Workshop. The terrified look Blake's golden eyes held was more than enough to convince the Doll that whatever Blake saw was too important to ignore.

Blake increased her gait to keep up with the taller woman. Her increased pace made her longcoat brush past the white lilies roughly. "Thank you. Lead the way."

* * *

There was a creak as the large wooden door of the Workshop's massive library opened to show two individuals entering the room. The first one was the Doll, which wasn't that much of a surprise since the porcelain woman was also a resident of the Dream. Belladonna was right behind her, which was a surprise. The cat Faunus usually only came to the Dream if it was absolutely necessary, such as acquiring new armored attires or to repair her weapons. Seeing as the girl only left a handful of hours, there had to be some complications and problems.

It was this thought that made the gears within Eleanor's mind to start processing what the problem was. She adjusted her glasses and let her blue orbs' gaze go towards them.

"Belladonna? I must admit, I wasn't expecting you to come back so soon." She made sure her voice was even and steady. Eleanore closed the thick book she held, as she slowly stood up to address her student.

"We have a problem." Belladonna said with a slight tinge of panic in her voice.

The remark made her mind whirl around theories already. There was a slight twitch in Eleanor's eyes as she looked at her student. "How urgent is this?"

"Extremely."

"Alright then. Please explain."

Belladonna's feet slightly shuffled in nervousness. Her golden eyes had also taken quite an interest within the secrets of the wooden floor. There was a sigh that was barely audible as she started to speak up. "I was attacked by another Hunter."

' _This was what got her so panicked?'_

Eleanor could only sigh at her student. "Crazed Hunters are a dime a dozen, Belladonna. Your reports have already stated that you put down some of the poor sods with your own two hands. What makes this one special?"

Belladonna's golden eyes met the blue of her teacher's. There was steel in those eyes. "It's not that. It's the fact that she knows what I am -a cat Faunus- and her overall general appearance." She paused as she let her words sink into the Doll and her teacher. "In all of Remnant's legends and myths there has never been anything about a humanoid Grimm, and it looked like she's one. Hell, she's probably the first one to be seen by a modern Remnan, or any other Remnan for that matter."

Eleanor paused as she tried to remember what the 'Grimm' were. Her mind finally recalled the needed information from the stories her student told her. "Grimm… Grimm... The monsters of your realm, correct?" A small nod was what she received from the cat Faunus. "I must admit, I am quite intrigued but what does this have to do with us?"

"I don't know." Belladonna shrugged. She honestly didn't know, but her entire being and her soul has been quivering at the mere sight of the Grimm eyed Hunter. She has hypothesized that it was a mere gut reaction of some sort of primal instinct that the Grimm has injected throughout history to all sentient beings in Remnant. It was a disconcerting thought, to be sure. It mirrored Yharnam and it's odd fascination to the cosmic deities who were constantly playing a game of chess using mere mortals as their pieces.

"But what she was wielding was. It's relevant to us, I mean. It was a greatsword, but she did something to it. It turned into this blade of green and blue light. It shot out blades of-" The clatter of a dropped sheathed katana knocked Belladonna out of her thoughts. Eleanor had dropped her makeshift crutch as a look of shock overcame her.

"Eleanor?" Doll was the one who broke the silence.

' _It can't be…'_

Eleanor's blue orbs blinked a few times to knock out her shock. She coughed lightly as she rasped out a response. "It's-it's the Holy Moonlight Sword."

"The… What?"

Eleanor picked up her sheathed katana and she turned her back on them as she started walking towards the mounted weapons on the wall. "A legendary blade wielded by one of the Healing Church legends, Ludwig."

' _I thought I got rid of that cursed blade.'_

She picked up a longsword and attached it to it's massive obsidian sheath with intricate rune work, turning it into a massive greatsword. "This thing is a mere imitation of the weapon." She tapped the flat of the blade lightly. "It was a mysterious blade that Ludwig came across during his expeditions. I have seen this blade. Hell, I was the one who put down the crazed man. I thought I got rid of it when I threw it into the abyss. It seems that I was wrong and doing that was the wrong thing to do."

Eleanor sighed as she continued her speech. "The real danger is not the weapon's power, but it's capabilities." She put the obsidian greatsword to a nearby wall to lean gently on it. "I only saw it truly realized once… On Ludwig himself. The blade could stave off the beast plague when held. It was a temporary solution, sure -but what made it special was the fact that it could do that.

"The blade has a mind of its own. It blesses whoever holds it with unheard of arcane arts and untold power. That very sword has the powers of the cosmos within its grasp." She sighed as the memories of her battle with Ludwig flashed within her mind. "I thought that a weapon like that didn't need to be in the mortal hands of man. I should've taken more precautions with it."

She pushed back her guilt as her gaze went back to the porcelain woman and their cat Faunus for a student. "A weapon of that caliber in the paws of your world's demons… An unknown variant with the intelligence and skills of a great warrior... It's a terrifying thought." She shuddered slightly at the idea of Yharnam repeating itself in Belladonna's own realm. "I have a request, Belladonna."

There was a slight pause before her student shrugged and had steel resolve within her golden eyes.

"To get the Holy Moonlight Sword?" Belladonna asked with resolve in her wavering voice.

Eleanor shook her head. Acquiring it again would have been the correct route once, but not now. There was only one solution now. "No. To destroy it. Do whatever it takes. Steal it, if you have to. Employ whatever mean necessary."

"Okay." Belladonna nodded as she agreed upon the request without defiance. Her golden irises went to gaze her teacher in mild interest at how she was acting. "You seem calm about all of this."

Eleanore was not as calm as her student thought. Her hands gripped the hilt of her precious weapon tightly enough for her knuckles to go bone white and her weapon groaning in protest. If her grip was any more strained, then there was no doubt that she would drawn blood from her death grip.

"Oh, believe me Belladonna, I'm nonplussed."

* * *

"I am truly sorry Blake, but I cannot go. I still have to round up any survivors I could find for our exodus." Eileen gestured to the people and children who were milling about Oedon Chapel. Her dark crimson feathered cloak slightly brushed at the gesture. They were deliberately avoiding the Hunters. It was most likely the inherent fear of the supernatural strength and scary determination that the Hunters held. "And there is still the matter of actually protecting those under my care. With the things you told me about this Hunter, I would feel safer if I stayed in close proximity of the chapel or if Valtr could cover for me."

After the harrowing conversation with Eleanor, Blake decided that she would be better off employing the help of another experienced Hunter for the mission against the Grimm eyed Hunter. This was where Blake decided to ask help to the first Hunter who she was on friendly terms with, Eileen.

Unfortunately, Eileen still had duties she needed to attend to.

"It's alright, Eileen. I just wanted you know." Blake apologized sincerely. She knew it would be selfish to take away the most fervent defender of the last survivors of Yharnam, so she was fine with the veteran Hunter declining. "Besides, you're doing better work saving people than running around hunting a crazed Hunter with a magic sword."

With words of thanks and apology, Blake left the Hunter garbed in crimson feathers and a Nevermore's beak for a mask. It was quite a shame to not have an experienced fighter with her to help with the hunt of a mystic sword, but it can't be helped.

Her steps were stopped by a light tap on her shoulder. She whipped around to see who it was.

It was Valtr with a wide grin plastered on her face. The strange hammer she wielded was hanging loosely to her shoulder, while the portable naval cannon was strapped onto her back. It was still baffling to Blake the tremendous strength of the eccentric woman without Aura reinforced muscles.

The memories of the lectures Blake endured from the Doll about strength equalling the quality of higher quality blood came into mind.

"Hey kid. Come with me for a bit." Valtr grabbed Blake's hand and led her to a more secluded place for conversation. They were behind a pillar as it was a mere ways away from where they were before.

"What's up, Valtr?" Blake's question made the older Hunter tilt her head in confusion. Blake cursed herself for unconsciously using Yang's casual way of talking to someone who is essentially a few centuries more primitive than what she's used to. "Oh, uhh… colloquialism from where I come from. What is it, Valtr?" _'Nice save, Belladonna!'_

"Oookaaay? Ahem…" Valtr straightened her posture as her grin went to 'shit-eating' territory. "I found a passage here that leads to… Somewhere. I don't know where, but that's part of the fun!"

The grin lightened a bit as she gestured to Eileen who hasn't noticed Blake or Valtr. The Hunter in question was conversing lightly with two sisters who seemed to have taken a liking to the masked veteran Hunter. "Aaanywaay… Eileen can't go with you because I need to explore this passage. Can't really do anything when your partner in crime is off exploring dark places. It's to advance the plot after all!"

Blake's nose scrunched up in confusion. "Uhm... Okay?"

"Come with me, pipsqueek! It'll be fun!" Valtr waved her hands in joy as her ginger hair shifted occasionally from her antics.

"I can go, I guess." Blake replied wryly. A momentary distraction might yield some results after all.

The grin that the hammer and cannon wielding woman went to a feral and primal form. "Atta girl! Let's smash some heads!"

* * *

The heavy boots worn by the pair of Hunters clanked and thumped as they moved through the second secret passage within the chapel turned haven for the lost. They were already progressing nicely, without encountering any beasts or crazed denizens during their exploration.

"Are you sure this is the right place?" Blake asked her companion as they rounded a corner. They have been travelling for a few minutes now.

Valtr waved her hand lightly in dismissal as she twirled her hammer to occupy herself. "This is the only secret passage in Oedon Chapel, aside from the one that leads to where you killed Henryk and Gascoigne anyway."

"Right."

Just over a corner was a crude elevator. They boarded the platform and Valtr stepped on the plate mechanism that triggered the pulley system. The machine lurched as it ascended to an upper floor that was most assuredly led to the higher districts of Yharnam.

The elevator ride was taking too long as an awkward silence overcame them. The hammer wielder coughed lightly as to destroy the silence.

"Sooo… Tell me, Blake. Where did you come from?" Valtr bobbed her head to the general direction of Blake. "I hail from Yharnam myself; born and raised here." There was pride in her voice as she dramatically gestured wildly with her hammer. "And I don't have any intention of dying here, even if the job description says otherwise. There's still a world of possibility out there!"

There was a sincere smile that Valtr held and joy within her emerald orbs. It seemed like the woman still held tremendous pride for the plan her and Eileen concocted. It was an odd sight to look at, for sure. A crumbling city without hope but only held despair to those who came, while the only light of hope was coming from two warriors who were trained to take and destroy.

It reminded Blake of her own world's symbol of hope: Huntsmen and Huntresses.

She shook her thoughts away to address her companion's question. "I uhh…" Eleanor and Blake have already fabricated a half-baked backstory for her in case anyone asked. "I come from the Far East."

It was the perfect excuse as only a handful of people hailed from the mystic place called the Far East. The only real connection people had from the place was that Cainhurst Hunters have adopted some techniques and weapons from the Far East as well as the noble caste adopting some natives of the place to be under their charge.

"Ah, I see." The simple answer seemed to sate Valtr's curiosity. A good thing too since Blake didn't want to expand on the half-baked backstory. "Quite a long ways from home, huh?"

"Yeah, it is." Blake could only agree nonchalantly.

The crude elevator lurched to a halt as it brought them to where their intended stop is. They both stepped out of the primitive machine and took in where it brought them. It was another room adorned with the same motifs and statues that was scattered throughout Oedon Chapel. Through it was hallway that led to an open air room that overlook the cityscape.

They passed both rooms in complete silence, to match the eerie absence of noise that has overcome the place. Blake fell into step just a few ways away of Valtr to guard their six in case of any ambushes while the veteran Hunter could deal with anyone or anything that was foolish enough to attack head on.

Valtr halted her advance and signaled Blake to do the same with an open palmed hand as a gesture. She stopped their advance due to a walkway that halted their progress. "Looks like we found where that passage leads to."

The walkway led to a massive spire of a tower that could have pierced the heavens, if not for the fact that there was another walkway just atop of it leading to Dust knows where. The sense of scale in Yharnam was baffling to say the least. Whoever had built the foundations of Yharnam must have had not that much sense of scale or were deliberately reaching out to the cosmos.

"What is this place?" Blake finally managed to knock herself out of her revery for the design sense of Yharnam.

Valtr seemed to have been moving in auto-pilot as she was approaching the spire. She entered the archway that led them inside to what seemed like a stockpile of caskets and other hunting supplies. Valtr finally spoke up as she scanned the "Looks like the Healing Church Hunter Workshop; that's not really important. It's just a ruin now. Never knew it was connected to our little haven though."

Blake took stock of the area herself. Everything was covered either in dust, cobwebs or blood that dried up long ago. "It's abandoned."

"Seems that way." Valtr snorted out as a response.

They were exploring the contents of the room, taking whatever supplies they could use. Valtr went to Dust knows where while Blake was content with poking through the upper levels. She found a badge of some sort that was taking the shape of an ornately designed sword. She pocketed the thing before going back down to find her companion.

There was a massive explosion of sound that stopped her steps.

"Hey kid! Look at what I found!" Valtr shouted out from a vague location. Blake's superb hearing told her that she was just a level or two below her. That, and the previous explosion was far too loud to not notice.

When she reached the initial floor that had the walkway, there was a gaping hole with the size large enough for a couple of people to enter without problem.

Blake peered out into the abyss that was the hole. There was some illumination that came from Valtr's hammer. The woman in question was standing on a wooden platform without a care in the world. The cat Faunus could only heavily sigh at the thing that was before her. " _Another_ secret passage?"

A hearty laugh echoed throughout the abyss as Valtr could only find everything that transpired to be humerous. "Where's your sense of fun, kiddo? Come on! Tis time for more exploration!"

Blake could only heave out another sigh as she descended towards her eccentric companion.

* * *

"What is this? _Where_ does this lead to?"

The pair was now standing just before a massive door.

They had descended into the abyss and it had yielded odd results. The platforms they used were of old wood that seemed out of place, considering that it was all placed haphazardly throughout the walls of the spire. It could have been used a for construction purposes some time long ago, but they were now being used by the Hunters.

Valtr was the one who broke the silence. "I think I know where."

With a great heave, the hammer wielder pushed the door with her mighty strength. The creaks of the old wood echoed throughout the walls of the spire. A massive gust of wind was blasted onto them before they could react. Valtr's bucket helmet clanked with her belt where the offending object was attached, as the wind continuously hit it with quite the force. Blake's own tricorn hat and longcoat vigorously waved around as well.

When the wind died down, what Blake saw was an impossibility to her mind.

It was the Workshop. She was sure that it was Eleanor's Workshop, but she was also sure that it wasn't. For one, it was decrepit and in a state of disarray unlike the Workshop in the Dream. This Workshop had wilted white lilies adorning it, a stark contrast to the endless sea of lilies that adorn the Dream. The sight was both nostalgic and melancholic, as if it was a vision of of both the past and the future.

"W-what." Blake could only gasp out in surprise. She was still too enamoured to peel her eyes away from it.

"Seems familiar doesn't it?" Valtr spoke up with a playful tone, but there was also a hint of melancholy somewhere. "From what I heard from dear old Ellie a ways back is that the Workshop in the Dream is based on this place, Gehrman's old Workshop. It's the physical Workshop, or the original one or something."

"Did you know it was here?" It was an honest question that had just popped inside Blake's mind.

Valtr grinned at Blake playfully as she hastened her steps as she shouted a "Nope!" for a response to the question.

Blake was already walking towards the Workshop, just a few paces away from her companion. It was still too baffling for her to see it in the waking world.

She unconsciously entered the small mansion that was the waking world's Workshop. The steps she took were both familiar and unfamiliar, like finding or a recalling a vision within a dream that came true like some sort of pseudo-clairvoyance. Valtr was already rummaging through any pile she could get her hands on while Blake could only retrace familiar and unfamiliar steps.

Her thoughts stopped as her foot bumped into something. Glancing down, what she saw was another familiar sight. A familiar dress and serene porcelain face greeted her.

"It's the Doll…" Blake crouched down and touched the Doll's porcelain face. As her gloved hand touched the cheek, the inanimate Doll shifted slightly and a small tear shaped pendant was released from it's hand.

"Hey kid! I found somethin' interesting!" Valtr's shout came from a few rooms away. Blake pocketed the pendant before saying a small apology to the inanimate Doll. She went towards where her companion was.

When she came to the room where Valtr was, she could only balk at the curiosity that was being held by the woman.

"What _is_ that?"

"You've been saying that every few minutes now." Valtr said with the playful tone that was more than enough for Blake to instinctively roll her eyes. "Looks like a petrified umbilical cord. I reckon it's more important than it looks. Gut feeling." It indeed was an umbilical cord. It was petrified to the point that it looked more like stone than flesh. Blake was thankful that it was inside the first sized vial.

"That's reassuring." The small remark of 'gut feeling' made Blake roll her eyes again.

"Here, take it?" Valtr said as she tossed the object towards Blake. It was the cat Faunus' superb reflexes and instincts that saved the cord from an untimely demise via floor.

With the object close enough for inspection, Blake could only shudder in disgust. "Ugh, why?"

"Don't be such a princess." Valtr snorted out at the incredulous look Blake had. "Might be something Ellie might find interesting. She's already sending you out to find a magical glowy sword, what's a weird umbilical cord gonna do to change your mission?"

"I guess…" Blake whispered out as she placed the offending object inside her pack, away from her eyes.

Valtr threw another object to the cat Faunus, but this time it hit her square in the head. It was a cloth badge of sorts with a key latched onto it. "Hey chin up! Here's a little something for coming along with me. It's a key to that massive gate just around the corner from the Chapel."

"Uhh thanks?" Before Blake could continue, something clicked within her mind. _'Coming along?_ ' "Wait, you're staying?"

"Yeah, I am. Might find something interesting here too. Aside from the umbilical cord, that is." Valtr went back to rummaging whatever she could get her hands on. "Go ahead pipsqueak, I'll be fine here."

"Okay then. See you later I guess."

* * *

 **Author's Notes:**

 **The Moonlight Sword has been a recurring item in a lot of FromSoft games, mostly in the Souls series. It's a really badass sword with little to no story behind it, but Ludwig and Bloodborne itself seemed like where the weapon truly belonged. The connection to the moon and the Lovecraft deities of that universe has a clear connection with each other. The weapon itself has the connection to the celestial body and would be a major player in the universe of Bloodborne.**

 **Anyway...**

 **The Night Unfurls will no longer be updated weekly. I'll be busy with life stuff, so expect the updates to be sporadic. Seeing as how I also want to write another thing… Yeah, sporadic may be too light of a word.**

 **I am terribly sorry, but well… Life happens to everyone. I need to sort things out in my almost non-existent life and I do need to catch up with a few things. Like making model kits! Jokes aside, I am truly sorry, life just happens even for shit tier NEETs like me.**

 **Plus writing on a schedule kinda dries up a lot of motivation on my part.**

 **See you on the next update?**


	9. Darkbeast

**Jesus Christ! I didn't realize I used a Deadpool line in the previous chapter! D: I thought it was kinda funny so I threw it in there without thinking! I haven't even watched it yet! Don't beat me up for not watching it yet! I just don't like going to theaters.**

 **And I completely forgot to remove the accent thing on Valtr! I did dun fuck up! I'll just sweep that under the rug and forgot that existed, ehehehe…**

 **Well, the weapon thing, I'm thinking up of a few things that Blake may pick up during her travels. We've already seen her repurpose some stuff (throwing knife with elemental properties), so her jury rigging something for an off weapon would be an interesting idea I could explore. She does still have her bow (in which I assume is made with the same fabric as the whip from Gambol Shroud, which is probably not it canon, but meh), so that could be used later on as an addition to said jury rigged weapon.**

 **With the whole Salem thing, since I only wrote her description, I could still repurpose her as an OC with just a questionable design. And all Blake could really see that was distinct was her eyes! I do admit that it was probably a really questionable move to use her. I just fell in love with her design!** _ ***Gushes***_ **Well, let's just see in the long run, neh?**

 **Oh, and I guess I'm sorry for the April Fools thing.**

 **Anyway, on with the show.**

* * *

 **The Night Unfurls**

 **Chapter 8**

 **Darkbeast**

* * *

Blake was tied up and dangling upside down from the roof of a crude jail cell.

Her bag and weapons just bellow her, far away from her reach. Her longcoat was hanging loosely with her journal smacking her head occasionally, as if gravity was mocking her. The entire scene would have been a spitting image of questionably historically inaccurate treasure hunters that most likely died from millennia old booby traps.

Her body ached all over, she was already craving for blood for practical reasons and recreational ones, and her own blood was already rushing to her head. Her tricorn hat even fell a few minutes earlier, as if the world was mocking her to further its point home. Some of her throwing knives even fell from her coat, clattering uselessly on the ground.

The only good thing was that she felt her Aura already on its merry way to full recovery. Just a few more minutes until it was full.

She honestly wasn't sure how she ended up in this ridiculous situation.

No, wait. She knew. It was just the blood rushing to her head that was talking, making confused claims to things. Stupid blood and stupid questionable sanity making inner dialogue for her.

Just after she left the Abandoned Workshop, she descended to the depths of the spire. The process itself was more akin to a test of dexterity than anything, which was easy for someone trained in infiltration and stealth.

Down at the bottom however was a pack of a new type of beast that she has never seen before. They were beasts that had an uncanny ability to generate fire and manipulate it. It was a hard fight, but as with all beasts she has encountered, they fell by her blade.

The fight with the beasts was taxing, however. Burn type attacks were always a go-to method to rapidly eat away at an Aura's protective barrier, just like a fully automatic high caliber weapon would. It is taxing for Aura to take constant damage, rather than resist a particularly strong blow. Proper manipulation of Aura could take large blows, not constant small ones.

That was why most Huntsmen and Huntresses prefer evasion or having a proper shield, rather than relying too much on Aura to protect them. It's death by a thousand cuts, unless you're fighting someone with Aura that specializes in soaking a ton of damage and/or had the training and ability to resist extreme heat, like Yang's.

The flame based attacks also seemed to have quite the nasty bite to it against flesh, fur, and cloth. For obvious reasons.

The method of attack the beasts was not odd at all. It was a more logical take in combat. No, what was odd however, was when what seemed to be the alpha beast fell, knowledge filled Blake's mind.

It was an ability she saw not-Fox do.

It was the Arcane Art called Beast Roar.

It was arcane knowledge that could be utilized to create shockwaves around her that potentially could deflect projectiles with just the proper manipulation of her voice. It was untested however as she was still out in the field.

Just after her kerfuffle with the flame wielding beasts, things went weird. Well, weirder.

A block or two away from the spire's base, she was ambushed. She was swarmed by the usual mutated citizens, mini-Nevermores, and attack dogs, but what was odd however were their staggering numbers and the tall lanky hooded figures that supervised them. Her Aura reserves were already weakened from the previous encounter, so the ambush was successful.

Needless to say, she was overwhelmed.

What was surprising however, is that she wasn't killed; well she was barely alive, but that's just a mere technicality. Most foes she encountered had no modus operandi besides killing anything in their way, that's why this turn of events were quite a shock to her.

The hooded figures stuffed her in a bloodstained sack and proceeded to bring her somewhere. No doubt they already had practice in this routine. She didn't really know where they would take her since she was coming to and fro from consciousness. Not that it would matter now, since she was obviously in a jail of sorts.

And this is how she ended up hanging from the ceiling like a piñata, waiting for beasts to crack her open and feast on her guts.

Too bad she could not use Beast Roar to escape this predicament...

* * *

With Aura fully restored to its maximum capacity, Blake finally had the energy and strength to execute her planned prison break.

The innate energy of her Aura coursed through her body like magma coursing through veins within the earth, waiting to burst forth at the right command. The energy coalesced and transformed into the form in which Blake needed it.

She focused the energy into a few select points throughout her body. She had barely the faintest idea on how to use her Aura in specific ways, unlike her counterpart within team JNPR, the quiet martial artist Ren. Her rudimentary knowledge on the subject of Aura manipulation would be more than enough to do the job however.

The energy exploded outward from where her bindings were and tore through them roughly.

With her body free, gravity asserted itself and Blake descended to the cold hard ground. With the grace of her heritage, she let her strong limbs take the fall first, thus negating the damage she would have taken.

She quickly grabbed her things and equipped them, putting them back in their proper place on her person. It merely took a few seconds to complete the process. When all of it was done, she deftly took a blood vial and injected herself to heal her from kinks and the lingering pain.

"Aahhh..." She purred as the viscous liquid coursed throughout her body and did its work. "That's the stuff."

' _It's a good thing they were stupid enough to leave my stuff on the floor. They didn't even bother to take my throwing knives away from my coat's hidden pockets and just let gravity do its work for them! Whatever. I'm going to kill them later anyway.'_

With her vitality fully restored and the pain of her body fading away, she moved towards the cell door. With the flat of her boot, she slammed her foot towards the cell door with Aura enhanced strength.

Surprisingly enough, the door was shattered open easily. No doubt it wasn't locked at all. The setup was far too stupid to be a coincidence. _'Too suspicious. This could be a trap.'_ She thought as she exited her cell.

Just beyond the crude jails cells were two paths before her, one leading downwards and a staircase leading upwards. Deciding that upwards would be her preferred choice, she took to the spiraling staircase.

She stopped in her tracks before starting her ascent as something caught her eye.

At the far end of the room was another unassuming cell, but it had a minor difference from all the other ones. Namely, there was a carriage wheel inside, but that was just a minor detail that could be chalked off as bizarre interior decor. The thing of import was a body, lying face down, clothed in fine white robes with golden embroideries of holy symbols.

Two options lay before Blake: ignore the body and discard it as a lost cause and continue on her way, or inspect if the person was dead or was barely alive just like she was when she was caught.

Deciding that the former would be the better choice, she walked towards the jail cell.

Further inspection of the cell door indicated that it was also unlocked. The state of the prison cells were laughably ridiculous. With a weary hand, she opened it. The metal creaked at the action, and she entered the cell.

Now with a better view of the body, she was baffled by what she saw. The mere sight of it made her rethink her sanity the fiftieth time this day. It was far too ridiculous to ignore, nor was she too curious to ignore the situation.

The body was wearing a golden traffic cone for a helmet.

Blake thoughtlessly took a pebble from her pocket and lightly threw it onto the golden traffic cone helmet. The pebble hit it with a metallic clang. Her manners completely taking hold of her, she horribly realized she just did quite a rude thing to what may be a person who was barely alive.

"Hello?" She called out at the traffic cone wearing person, hoping that if the person was still alive, they would have just ignored the pebble incident.

"Mrgle.." The person let out a grunt as they were just waking up. Blake hastily crouched beside the body and inject them with a couple of blood vials, hoping it would be enough to heal them. It seems that Blake's rudeness would be swept under the rug, forever to be forgotten.

"Hey, are you okay?"

The person the grunted as they started to stand upright. Their legs were still a bit wobbly, but the blood seemed to have done its magic. "I believe so." He said. The voice was too masculine and familiar to be female. "My thanks, Hunter of the Workshop."

' _That voice... No! Don't think about it! It's another dimension, for Dust's sake! Don't be ridiculous, me! Get your shit together.'_

"Uhh, Blake is fine." She blurted out in response.

"Very well then. I am known as Alfred, prodigy of Master Logarius. Although, Alfred is fine, as the name tends to be a mouthful." He joked as he dusted himself off. The joke itself didn't faze Blake at all. "Many thanks for saving me, Blake." Seeing his jest fail, Alfred bowed slightly before spotting a familiar sight. He walked towards the carriage wheel and hefted it with ease. "Ahh, it seems that you brought my weapon as well."

This caught Blake's attention and she tilted her head slightly in confusion."Wait, wait. Your weapon's a wheel? How does that even work..."

"It is no mere wheel, miss Blake." Alfred giggled lightly at the confusion of his savior. He spun it around before he let the wheel transform. The sheer power and rage seeped out of the odd weapon as motes of red mist that transformed and reformed into deformed faces engulfed it. Blake could help herself back off a few feet from the traffic cone wearing man. "The Logarius Wheel. It's a weapon we Executioners wield to hunt and slaughter the monstrous Vilebloods of Cainhurst."

Blake flinched at the statement. Eleanor was a Cainhurst descendant; even if the fact that she was far off from the bloodlines, it would still incur the wrath of Alfred. No doubt the fact that she was Blake's mentor was already damning in the eyes of someone like him. She decided that being in his good side was the best choice she could do right now.

"Cainhurst?" She parroted, just to seem uninformed. Mild deception was needed if she didn't want someone actively hunting her or anyone she was associated with in this world.

"Yes, of course. Their unholy blood taints whatever it touches. Why do you ask? Have you perchance met one?"

Her hand took her pistol stealthily and hid it inside her bag. It was a good thing she was slightly obscured by a clever use of her Semblance: having an intangible shadow clone directly in front of her and mimic her facial features while she hid her firearm. It was a simple enough trick to have her Semblance cover for her. The hard part was to keep her physical body from being noticed.

She, and by extension her clone, shook their head. "Uhm, no. Not really? I've only heard about them from Eileen."

"Eileen, as in, Eileen the Crow?" If Alfred's face wasn't obscured by the gaudy gold traffic cone, Blake could have seen surprise in his expression. "I was wondering to myself how you happened upon such an exquisite weapon." He gestured towards where Blake sheathed the Blade of Mercy. "It makes sense, now that you've revealed yourself to be affiliated with a decorated Hunter of Hunters."

"Heh... Yeah." It was a half-assed response, but that would have been enough. _'Just keep the lie together and tell Eileen and Eleanor about this later.'_

Alfred was already just a ways away from the cell door before he turned his head back to Blake in realization. "So then, miss Blake. Do you have a plan for our escape?"

* * *

Blake spun as she dodged the fist of one of the hooded creatures that captured both her and Alfred. Her blade slashed at the extended limb and the metal hummed as it eviscerated the offending limb off the body. The creature clutched the stump that once was its hand as it backed away in fear.

There was another creature who charged at her. She quickly took a handful of throwing knives and let them fly, hitting it on the chest, neck, and forehead.

Out of the corner of her golden orbs, she could see Alfred dealing with his own group of creatures. His wheel easily crushed bones and limbs with ease. There was a certain savagery in his favored method of combat that seemed to strike fear within the Faunus, and it wasn't just who he reminded her of. It was also quite disconcerting to hear him maniacally laugh as he slaughtered beasts left and right.

The momentary distraction Blake had gave their opponents the right opening to strike.

Smaller humanoid creatures swarmed around her and pinned her down. They all were covered in grotesque eyes that all stared at her with glee. They all had various primitive tools for surgery in their hands, and were all too eager to use them on her. Some of them were even pointed towards her eyes.

She needed to get out of their hold, fast.

' _Force.'_

Time seemed to slow as she pooled massive amounts of energy into her chest, concentrating it into the form she wanted it to be. She hadn't used the technique yet, but desperate times call for desperate measures.

' _Balance._ '

She shut her eyes as her lungs flared in pain at the exertion she's putting her body in. Her concentration wavered slightly at the pain, but she could not afford it to. She needed to form the energy into a more suitable form, a form she could control. A form that had the perfect balance of force and power.

' _Push.'_

The energy escaped her vocal cords and manifested itself in a bloodcurdling screech that echoed throughout the decrepit jail, no doubt it would attract everything that heard it. Shockwaves of force exploded outwards as the creatures around her were knocked backed. Some of them stumbled over each other, further disorienting them.

Blake took this chance and shot upwards to stand as she primed and threw her molotov cocktails at the creatures.

Their flesh burned and cooked as the flames of the projectiles consumed them. Their screams of pain was a mere distraction as she charged towards Alfred to join the fray.

The carnage of combat continued on with Blake and Alfred teaming up to clear out the room with ease.

The Logarius Wheel ground flesh to a meaty pulps and bodies into unrecognizable ground meat. It was a hefty thing with the likes of those with brute strength could wield. Blake's own weapon was another matter entirely. The Blade of Mercy was elegant as it hummed and sang its song of violence as it tore through flesh and bone with ease and grace.

With all their opposition slain, they both took a few minutes to recover. Alfred still had a few lingering wounds, but he had managed to scrounge up a handful of vials for himself by drawing the liquid from their fallen foes.

"Room... Cleared." Blake gasped out as she gulped hearty amounts of oxygen to recover from the fatigue of combat. Her body had a dull ache, but could easily be subsided by a blood vial, and she still had an adequate amount of the healing items before she needed to ask the Messengers for more.

Realizing that her Roar would have attracted more of the hostile creatures to them. She looked towards Alfred to tell him of the problem.

"We need to get out of here before more of them come."

"I know." He said as he stood up and dusted himself off. He took his wheel and hefted it to his back before looking back to address Blake. "It's still quite impressive what you did. It's rare to see Hunters this day and age using a technique by Irrelevant Izzy. Well, the same could be said about sane Hunters as well, I suppose."

"Thanks. I guess." She wasn't sure if it was an insult or a complement, so she just chalked it up and would later forget about the statement.

They bumbled about the room to find an clues to the outside. Fortunately, Blake found a hole in the wall hidden within the clutter. The draft that the hole produced was a good indicator that this led to the outside. "Hey, Alfred. There's a hidden passage here. Don't know where it leads though."

"It's better than nothing, I suppose."

* * *

Both Blake and Alfred waded through the foliage within the tunnel network. It dark and hard to navigate within, but Blake had little effort in traversing as her Faunus eyes gifted her with night vision. The same could not be said to Alfred however, as he could only rely on his sense of touch, even if his eyes were already adjusting in the dark. It was probably the fault of the traffic cone obscuring his vision.

There was a slight incline that led downwards, towards where the smell of the outside air was palpable. The light breeze that the draft created was a pleasant feeling. Blake lead both of them to it, intent that it was the right path to the outside.

When they exited the caverns, their visions were assaulted by the dazzling contrast of the bright purples, oranges, and dark blues of the early evening with the dark shadows of the artificial evening that was cast upon the massive facades of Yharnam's massive spires and districts. It was a breathtaking sight that caught both of them with quite a surprise.

They walked towards a large clearing that led towards a massive door. The old buildings outside indicated that they were somewhere near the older districts within Yharnam. This was a boon since Blake had some sense of familiarity of those areas.

Her eyes soaked in the haunting sight before her, these were the moments that she truly did feel bliss in this alien dimension. "This looks really amazi-"

A loud, ear piercing shriek broke through their wonderment as a massive skeletal beast leapt down from obscurity from one of the massive spires.

It was a massive monstrous and horrifying thing. Its flesh and skin were long ago flayed into oblivion as if a mockery of life itself. It's entire body was a facade of its former self as it was entirely made up of its skeleton and what was left of its fur clinging on the skeletal frame. Its face, no more than a skull, had a hideous grin that didn't Small sparks of blue electricity arced throughout its body.

It stalked closer to them, examining them.

The skeletal beast shrieked again, but because of its close proximity to them, Blake could literally feel the eardrums her two sets of ears almost pop at the action, so she clutched her human ears unconsciously.

"What. The. Hell." She muttered as she slowly backed away from the skeletal beast. She didn't need fear to slow her down.

"It's… It's a Darkbeast." Alfred audibly gulped at the sight of the creature. It was clear in his voice and how his demeanor changed that this was no ordinary beast they were staring down. "W-we… We may not stand a chance."

"Shit." She cursed darkly as their situation just kept getting better and better. "Well, I don't think it wants us to leave, and I'm not going down without a fight." _'My supposed immortality gives me a slight edge, but I don't know about Alfred.'_ Needless to say, those words were never said.

"I-I…" Alfred hesitated a bit before finally finding the resolve within him. "Very well then…" He hefted his Logarius Wheel over his shoulder in preparation for combat. There were a few things a man of his caliber could not ignore, and two of those things for Alfred were a fight together with an ally and a debt he needed to pay. "This pays my debt to you for saving my life."

"Noted." Blake gave an animalistic and feral smirk at her impromptu ally and fellow Hunter of beasts as they prepare for combat.

The beast howled ominously as electricity engulfed its entire body. Stray bolts of it were shooting out from left and right as the beast's howl echoed throughout Yharnam. It was ready to throw down with the Hunters before it.

Blake acted first, drawing her Blade of Mercy and splitting it in two as she charged at the beast. She moved at a blur without minding the excessive display of power as she confident that her Aura would protect her from the weaker stray bolts of lightning and static that the Darkbeast would assuredly use.

She rushed towards with a spin as she used her weight to add power to her swing. The two blades were blocked with a skeletal hand of the beast. The there was a slight clang as siderite and bone met. It seemed that the reinforced bone of the skeletal Darkbeast was as sturdy as the starmetal blade.

Alfred was also upon the Darkbeast. He slammed his hefty wheel at the foot of the beast. The force of the impact was great enough to damage the bone. He let the wheel split in the middle as he let the red mist engulf it and it spun, grinding the cursed wood along the bone. It cracked and creaked as the wheel did its work

The Darkbeast shrieked in pain at the attack of the two Hunters. It let its forearms push the two away from it. They both tumbled and skidded at the dirt. Blake had her Aura take the brunt of the attack while Alfred let his sturdy body take the attack full force. The skeletal beast quickly followed up by hurling two bolts of electricity at the two Hunters.

Blake evaded the bolt with a quick step sideways and a roll for good measure. Alfred blocked the one racing towards him using the Logarius Wheel. The cursed red mist groaned in protest as the the weapon of murder was reduced to a petty shield.

They needed to change their method of attack, fast.

Alfred charged again, now with renewed vigor from the cursed red mist blessing him with its power. Blake backed away to prime all of her remaining molotov cocktails.

The traffic cone wearing man matched the speed of the Darkbeast by putting more power if his attacks and ignoring smaller attacks to focus on blocking the more lethal ones. Overwhelming force was the bread and butter of the Executioners, and this one was trying to race the beast in a battle of attrition.

Blake blacked away a few meters to gain a distance advantage with what she planned. She threw cocktail after cocktail at the beast, careful not to hit the Executioner with stray projectiles. The flames burned the beast's fur and slowly fed on it to fuel its inferno. The Darkbeast shrieked in pain as the growing flames ate away at it.

"Blake!" Alfred shouted out as he remembered his lessons on beasts when he was still an initiate. He grit his teeth as he let the cursed red mist of the Logarius Wheel protect him. "I think Darkbeasts are weak against fire!"

The beast's wails of pain stopped as it let a shockwave of electricity to stop the flames from hurting it. Lances of lightning hit both Hunters in a surprise attack. The mist was still protecting Alfred, but it was waning. Blake's own Aura took the hit not too kindly. Electrecitiy was just as bad as fire when used against her Aura.

"I'm out of molotov cocktails, but I'll see what I can do!" An idea crossed her mind as she recalled her fight against not-Coco. It was a boon she still had the things she needed to replicate it. "I've got an idea!" She shouted at her ally. "But I need you to get its attention!"

"It's not like I've done anything else!" Alfred quipped back, but it seemed that he gained some confidence in what Blake was planning.

Blake took out all of her remaining oil urns and elemental resins while mentally recalling how many throwing knives she had left. She needed to dedicate all of her urns at the Darkbeast, hoping that the black liquid would stick on its fur. She ducked, dodged, and weaved all of its attacks as she smashed them at it when she got close and threw them if she was forced away from it.

Alfred did his best to keep the beast's attention on him, blocking its attacks with his wheel and punishing it with crushing strikes if it ever its attention on him waned. The Executioner occasionally using the red mist of his wheel to throw skull shaped projectiles at the Darkbeast. His white robes were already covered with so much blood that it was easily mistaken as crimson.

With all of her oil urns used up, Blake switched to the next phase of her plan. She was still circling the beast to avoid any stray attacks.

One hand held the resins needed while the other drew her throwing knives. She hastily applied the orange substance onto a handful of knives and threw them onto the Darkbeast with Aura reinforced strength. The projectiles had enough force to dent the bone and the resins' embers lit the black liquid covering the beast. Batch after batch of the flaming projectiles hit the beast, lighting it up and burning the creature.

It was a resounding success as the wails of agony continued endlessly. Its bones blacked, its fur burning endlessly, and whenever it tried to shut out the flames with its electricity, the oil would not allow it. The beast of lightning was now reduced to the burning beast, only sustained by its rage.

Blake threw the useless containers of resin as she was out of resources. "I'm out of throwing knives!" She shouted at Alfred who was still doing his best to block and parry the burning beast's attacks.

"Blood and damnation!" He cursed as his body ached endlessly in pain. The cursed mist was eating too much of his life force just to sustain it. He shut it out as the wheel's circular form reattach itself from the split. "We'll have to end this the hard way!"

Blake was already on her way to join the melee again. The Blade of Mercy was split in two and it hummed as its edges sliced through the air. Her Aura wreathed the siderite steel as it slammed into the blacked bone. Again and again she struck in an intricate dance, ignoring the pain of the inferno and stray sparks that hit her Aura.

The siderite proved its strength as it broke the bone of the forearm of the beast. The weapon sang as the the shards of blackened beast bone scattered uselessly onto the ground. The beast was barely holding on, trying to stand up with only one forearm.

She let her Semblance and Aura take over as dashed and charged at the other forearm of the beast. With the force of the charge, she let the blade smash into the other forearm and shatter it as well.

The beast fell face first to the ground.

"Grrraaaahhh!"

With a horrific warcry, Alfred smashed the Logarius Wheel onto the base of the skull of the beast. Motes of red mist escaped through the wheel as it started to spin violently. The cursed weapon ground the skull for a scant few moments before it finally shattered as the wheel purred at the carnage.

And with that, the Darkbeast was dead.

"That…" Alfred fell onto the ground, bottom first. His ragged breathes peppering his speech. "That definitely got the blood pumping."

"Yeah, that was something…" Blake also fell to the ground, but face first. Her ragged breathing was desperately begging for oxygen. She took out a blood vial and quickly inject herself with it to regain some lost stamina. "Damn… That took a lot out of me…"

There was a light chuckle that was hitched with hearty breathing as Alfred tried to stand up while addressing the Faunus. "I did not expect anyone as young as you to use Quickening like that." There was definetly admiration in his voice. "It was more than impressive."

"Th-Thanks." Blake blushed slightly at the compliment. It was quickly squashed as she reminded herself of who Alfred reminded her of. It was rude to compare the Executioner to _him_ , but it couldn't be helped. "I'll… I'll need to tell Eileen about this."

He mulled the idea a bit, thinking about the consequences. Seeing that there was no harm in it, he agreed easily. "With dangers like this lurking within the city, her exodus needs to happen faster." He nodded his head in agreement with his words. "I'll tag along with you, if you don't mind."

"Yeah, I don't mind."

"Excellent!" He shouted in triumph just before he started coughing and heaving. He spat out a few broken teeth as they clicked when they hit his helmet. He sheepishly looked at Blake, pleading for something. "Perhaps you could spare another blood vial?"

Blake could only sigh out in response.

* * *

 **Guuuhhh… Fight scenes… Too much killing things with fire... I'm already using too much of the spinning thing on fight scenes… Spindonna anyone? No? Okay...**

 **At least we have the Pyramid Head cosplayer enter the scene!**

 **The decision to give Blake Arcane Arts were mostly there to coincide with her constantly increasing Insight, further slippage to insanity due to said Insight, along with her unconsciously picking up things in Yharnam that should never ever be picked up. This is merely the start. Plus, having Blake cast spells seem totes cool. And besides, diversity of abilities is needed.**

 **As, you've read, I've taken a few liberties with Beast Roar. The fact that its knowledge instead of an inanimate object like in-game makes more sense in context. Why would a severed hand of a beast give you the ability to roar like that? Of course it won't. It's the inherent knowledge within the hand that would give you that.**

 **So, logically, I'll be taking a few liberties with those Arcane Spell thingies. Mostly just them don't requiring bullets to use, because that just seems silly if put in real world practicality, and the fact that like Runes within the lore (unspeakable words of Lovecraftian creatures written down so that humans can comprehend them), they're the physical manifestation of thoughts/concepts/words asserting themselves within the waking world.**

 **Last chapter, she didn't get the Old Hunter's Bone. It's mostly because her Semblance can already gives her her own version flash steps, so it would be a bit redundant to have her the Diddling Bone.**

 _ **The Night Unfurls**_ **, now with more diversity! MORE DIVERSITY I SAY!**

 **Ahem…**

 **Back to** _ **Stardew Valley**_ **with me until I get my hands on** _ **Dark Souls 3**_ **. Wait for me, my gemstone eating wife and my precious pumpkins!**

 **See you on the next chapter?**


End file.
